Tag: ivory

Masatsugu

Masatsugu, ‘Carved Ivory Okimono Boar’, 19th Century, Signed, Japan

An Okimono may be a small Japanese carving, similar to, but larger than netsuke. Unlike netsuke which had a specific purpose, okimono were purely decorative and were displayed in the tokonoma, a small recessed display area in the house. An okimono can be made out of wood, ivory, ceramic or metal. They were normally not larger than a few centimetres and depicted all sorts of animals, mythological beasts, humans, gods, fruit, vegetables and objects, sometimes combined with each other, in all sorts of positions.

Masatsugu was the name of one of the most famous artist carvers in Osaka, Japan.

Cat Netsuke

Carved Ivory Cat Netsuke

Traditional Japanese garments—robes called kosode and kimono—had no pockets; however, men who wore them needed a place to store their personal belongings, such as pipes, tobacco, money, seals, or medicines.

The solution was to place such objects in containers (called sagemono) hung by cords from the robes’ sashes (obi). The containers may have been pouches or small woven baskets, but the most popular were beautifully crafted boxes (inrō), which were held shut by ojime, which were sliding beads on cords. Whatever the form of the container, the fastener that secured the cord at the top of the sash was a carved, button-like toggle called a netsuke.

Netsuke, like the inrō and ojime, evolved over time from being strictly utilitarian into objects of great artistic merit and an expression of extraordinary craftsmanship. Such objects have a long history reflecting the important aspects of Japanese folklore and life. Netsuke production was most popular during the Edo period in Japan, around 1615–1868. Today, the art lives on, and some modern works can command high prices in the UK, Europe, the USA, Japan and elsewhere.