Ceramic sculpture of the white fox, messenger of Inari – the Shinto and Buddhist deity of harvest, rice and abundance.

The Inari fox (kitsune) is a benevolent animal, a sign of prosperity and wealth. This proximity to the kami Inari leads to the two figures being mixed and substituted in the imagination, with the animal becoming a fox-god. Inari’s fox is depicted holding a variety of objects in its mouth with different symbolic meaning: a wheat ear, a scroll, a ball or a key. In this case, it is a sutra scroll as sign of wisdom. It symbolizes Inari’s secret, which enables any wish to be fulfilled.

Several places are dedicated to Inari. The best-known is the Fushimi Inari-taisha in Kyoto. The deity is worshipped in fox form at the Jôzan Inari-jinja shrine in Matsue.

Japan – Taishô era (1912-1926)

Height : 4.7 in (12 cm) – width: 2.7 in (7.5 cm) – depth: 2.4 in (6 cm)