TOAD WOODEN NETSUKE, RIMU – EDO
Reference: 2024-1254
Netsuke of a wooden toad with its throat swollen.
The toad or frog (kaeru) is associated with good luck and wealth. Kaeru means both “toad” or “frog” and “to come home” in Japanese. This extension of meaning is due to the toad’s ability to return each year to the pond of its birth. A gong in the shape of a toad can thus sometimes be used as a door hammer or to protect a house.
Signed below Rimu (梨夢), probably from Iwami province.
Japan (probably Iwami province), Rimu – Edo period (1603-1868), early 19th century
Height: 1.1 in / 2.8 cm – width: 1.6 in / 4 cm – depth: 1.8 in / 4.5 cm