Impressive okimono in the form of a sphere entirely sculpted of an army of frogs, inlaid eyes in horn and tinted skin with India ink. Toads and frogs from various sizes and textures are entangled to one another in a breathtaking sculptural achievement.
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. 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. A gong in the shape of a frog can sometimes be used as a door hammer or to protect a house.

SIGNED BY MASAMITSU
Masamitsu was a well-known netsuke carver, in activity in the late XIX th century he was a prominent member of the Nagoya school. He is well known for his naturalist work with mice and batrachians but he made very few of these orbs. Carved from solid, a huge block was necessary, not to mention the amount of time necessary. However a few sculpted groups subsisted, one of which is kept at the Metropolitan Museum of New York
Elephant ivory (elephantidae spp) CITES will be transmitted to the buyer

Japan – Meiji era : (1868-1912)
Diameter : 5,5cm