Ɏ TOMOTADA: A SUPERB IVORY NETSUKE OF A RECUMBENT SHISHI SCRATCHING ITS JOWL

Ɏ TOMOTADA: A SUPERB IVORY NETSUKE OF A RECUMBENT SHISHI SCRATCHING ITS JOWL By Izumiya Tomotada, signed Tomotada 友忠 Japan, Kyoto, late 18th century, Edo period (1615-1868) A bold and impressive ivory netsuke of a recumbent shishi, executed in distinct Kyoto style, scratching its jowl. The beast with a bushy tail, mane, and floppy ears, with one hindleg extended to scratch its bearded chin. The powerful expression is a mixture of a deep satisfaction and an expressively powerful snarl. The shishi’s spine and rib cage are articulated in an impressive manner and the eyes are inlaid with dark horn pupils. Generously excavated and asymmetrical himotoshi to the underside and signed within a raised rectangular reserve TOMOTADA. The ivory with a naturally grown honey-yellow patina. LENGTH 4.6 cm Condition: Very good condition with minor surface wear and light age cracks. Provenance: Collection of Fritz Niescher, and thence by descent in the same family. Fritz Niescher (1889-1974) was a Chemnitz entrepreneur who built an impressive collection comprised of Japanese works of art and modern art. His extensive collection included works by Ernst Barlach and Otto Dix. Pieces from his collection have been part of traveling exhibits since his death, and many are housed today in the Ernst Barlach Haus in Hamburg. Mentioned in the Soken Kisho, Tomotada is perhaps the most renowned and certainly the most copied of all netsuke artists. His models were chiefly animal subjects. The Soken Kisho notes that he carved oxen and that his work was copied in his own lifetime. Museum comparison: Compare a closely related ivory netsuke of shishi and cub, by Tomoatada, signed Tomotada, from the Karl-Ludwig Kley collection, part of the exhibition Kyoto Netsuke—Masters & Myths, 30 November 2023 to 1 April 2024, at the Museum of East Asian Art, and illustrated in the exhibition catalogue, p. 168-169. Auction comparison: Compare a closely related ivory netsuke of a shishi and cub, attributed to Tomotada, at Bonhams, The Harriet Szechenyi Sale of Japanese Art, 8 November 2011, London, lot 13 ( sold for GBP 21,250). Trade Certificate: The trade certificate for the sale of this lot within the EU has been granted (permit number DE-DÜS231016-124). This item contains ivory, rhinoceros horn, tortoise shell, and/or some types of tropical wood and is subject to CITES when exporting outside the EU. It is typically not possible to export such items outside of the EU, including to the UK. Therefore, after this item has the necessary trade certificate, it can only be shipped within the EU or picked up in our gallery in person.