A small bronze sculpture of a frog represented in its bath soaking with a lotus root. It
was designed to be used as an incense burner. A Chinese poem has been engraved on
the back. The frog (kaeru) is associated with luck and wealth. In feudal Japan, tax
collectors could be recognized by the frog-shaped netsuke they wore on their belts.
Nowadays people keep frog amulets in their wallet to be wealthy. Kaeru means both
“frog” and “coming home” in Japanese. This extension of meaning is due to the frog’s
ability to return each year to the pond where it was born. This representation of frog
can either be referring to the satisfaction you can only feel at home or to comfort of no
longer being in need.
Japan – Meiji era (1600-1868)
Height: 5 cm -length: 8 cm – width: 6 cm