Three wood netsuke

19TH CENTURY

Details

Three wood netsuke
19th Century
Of a Chinese man riding on a mythical beast, eyes inlaid in horn, signed Sei; two sumo wrestlers, one performing the kawazu throw, signed Masakazu; two rats on a Chinese table, eyes inlaid in horn, signed Ikko
1 5/8in. (4.3cm.), 1 5/8in. (4.1cm.) and 2in. (4.8in.) high respectively (3)

Literature

For a similar example to the second, see Barker,R. and Smith, L. Netsuke, The Miniature Sculpture of Japan, (British Museum Publications, Ltd. 1976), p. 104, pl. 188. For an example in ivory, Eskenazi, Japanese netsuke from the Carre collection, (1993), p. 84, pl. 77.

Lot Essay

The Kawazu gake or throw, is still in use and is on the list of the seventy official throws. It is named after Kawazu no Saburo, and became established in sumo rules when Saburo succeeded in gripping his opponent's neck in a kubinage, combining it with a leg trip to topple him over, thus winning the fight.

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