175 - MASAKATA: A FINE NAGOYA SCHOOL WOOD NETSUKE OF A SLEEPING SHOJO

MASAKATA: A FINE NAGOYA SCHOOL WOOD NETSUKE OF A SLEEPING SHOJO By Masakata, signed Masakata 正方 Japan, Nagoya, early 19th century, Edo period (1615-1868) Finely carved and compact, the Shojo sits with her face cradled in both hands as she sleeps off the effects of too much sake. The cheeks and chin compress gently against the palms, giving the expression a convincing sense of drowsy contentment, while the long hair falls over the back of a crisply worked kimono. Large asymmetrical himotoshi to the back, the larger opening deeply excavated to accommodate the cord knot. The cherrywood bearing a rich dark brown tone from handling. Signed MASAKATA in a recessed reserve to the underside. The artist is a rarely encountered Nagoya school carver, evidently working stylistically in the manner of Tadatoshi. LENGTH 3.4 cm Provenance: Ex-collection Hanns Jatzlau (1926-2010), Hannover, Germany. Lempertz, 10 June 2006, Cologne, lot 896. From a noted German private collection, Munich, Germany, acquired at the above sale. Hanns Jatzlau was a German painter, draftsman, and professor who formed a collection of more than 300 netsuke, many of which he recorded in his own drawings. Condition: Excellent condition with only very minor wear. Sleeping Shojo were a favored Nagoya subject, but most are shown reclining with the head propped on one hand. The present seated figure is markedly less conventional: the face buried between both hands creates an unusually compact silhouette and an intimate, almost childlike sense of exhaustion. Auction comparison: Compare a closely related Nagoya school wood netsuke of a sleeping Shojo by Tadatoshi, 3.4 cm high, at Zacke, Asian Art Discoveries, 3 September 2024, Vienna, lot 610 (sold for EUR 5,850).