Project Description
Wood netsuke of a snail on a bucket. Circa 1870. By Gyokuryusai Tomoshige
A masterpiece of delicate carving and staining. The soft body of the snail is stippled, while the highly polished shell is stained from light to dark with a dappled surface
Signed on the side of the bucket: gyokuryusai tomoshige
Provenance:
Julius and Arlette Katchen collection, Paris.
Sold at their sale (part I), Sotheby’s London, 8th November 2005, lot 115, where purchased by the present owner
Information:
A relatively rare artist, whose favourite subject this seems to have been. This is an unusually good variant of the composition, especially for the contrasts in the staining
Literature:
A. Katchen, Netsuke 7, vol. 2, pp. 52-53, no. K631
MR1065