{"product_id":"shunga-netsuke-of-a-sleeping-mermaid-embraced-by-an-octopus-mammoth-tusk","title":"Shunga Netsuke of a Sleeping Mermaid Embraced by an Octopus, Mammoth Tusk","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"jp-product\" data-world=\"Japan Luxury Archive\"\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"jp-lede\"\u003eA mermaid asleep on her folded arm, her scaled tail curling behind her, while an octopus settles over her like a cloak.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"jp-note\"\u003eThis piece belongs to the private room of the house and is shown to adults only.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eThe Piece\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe mermaid, or ningyo, is unclothed to the waist with her long hair inked grey and spread beneath her. Her tail is engraved scale by scale and ends in a split fin. The octopus is carved large and soft, its round eyes pierced, its arms lying along her back. Light marks of handling are noted.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFrom below one sees the suckered arms and the fin worked in openwork, with the cord passage between them.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eIconography and Meaning\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe image descends from the most celebrated of all shunga, Hokusai's print of 1814 known in the West as the Dream of the Fisherman's Wife, in which a diver is embraced by an octopus. Here the diver has become a mermaid, doubling the dream: a creature of the sea visited by another.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Japanese name for the pleasure such an object gives is te-zawari, the feel in the hand. A netsuke is meant to be turned, warmed and known by touch as much as by sight, and its surface will mellow with the years to the soft tone collectors call patina, the gentle beauty of use that the aesthetics of wabi and sabi hold dear.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eDetails\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul class=\"jp-details\"\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eType:\u003c\/strong\u003e Katabori netsuke, carved in the round\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSubject:\u003c\/strong\u003e Sleeping mermaid with an octopus\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMaterial:\u003c\/strong\u003e Woolly mammoth tusk\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTechnique:\u003c\/strong\u003e Hand carving, staining and ink engraving\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eColour:\u003c\/strong\u003e Ivory white with grey and soft brown\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eLength:\u003c\/strong\u003e 51 mm (2.0 in)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eWidth:\u003c\/strong\u003e 25 mm (1.0 in)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eHeight:\u003c\/strong\u003e 27 mm (1.1 in)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePeriod:\u003c\/strong\u003e Contemporary, in the classical tradition\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eMade in:\u003c\/strong\u003e Japan\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMeasured by hand; please allow a gentle margin of about 1 to 2 mm.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCondition\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eLight marks of handling and age are present; the Desk will send close photographs of any area on request.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eStaining and ink engraving are bright, and the polish is even.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEvery photograph is part of the description.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCondition grade \u003cstrong\u003eB (good, light wear)\u003c\/strong\u003e on the Japanese scale; see \u003ca href=\"\/es\/blogs\/news\/japanese-condition-ranks-explained\"\u003eJapanese condition ranks, explained\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eAuthenticity \u0026amp; Care\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCarved by hand in Japan from the tusk of the woolly mammoth, an extinct species whose fossil tusk is not elephant ivory and is not listed under CITES. It is a contemporary work in the classical tradition, examined and photographed in Japan before dispatch. Rules on mammoth tusk differ between countries and, in the United States, between states; please confirm that it may be received at your address before you buy. Keep away from direct sun, dry heat and sudden changes of humidity, and handle with clean dry hands.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eDelivery from Japan\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWrapped by hand in Japan in soft tissue and a rigid case, and shipped insured and tracked by EMS or an equivalent express service. Import duties and taxes, where applicable, are payable on arrival. Every sale is final; please ask anything you wish to know before you buy, and see our \u003ca href=\"\/es\/policies\/refund-policy\"\u003epublished policy\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"jp-closing\"\u003e\u003cp\u003eConsidered offers are welcome through Send an Offer, and each one is reviewed personally. Further pieces of the kind are kept in \u003ca href=\"\/es\/collections\/shunga-hidden-arts\"\u003eShunga and Hidden Arts\u003c\/a\u003e and in the wider room of \u003ca href=\"\/es\/collections\/japanese-netsuke-sagemono-inro\"\u003eNetsuke, Sagemono and Inro\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"jp-cta\" data-world=\"Japan Luxury Archive\"\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"jp-cta-eyebrow\"\u003eConcierge\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLooking for a particular subject, carver or companion piece? Our Hunting Salon™ locates it across Japan's private collector circles, then inspects, documents and delivers it to you. \u003ca href=\"\/es\/pages\/hunting-salon%E2%84%A2\"\u003eBegin a Hunting Salon™ request\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"jp-search\"\u003eCollectors also search: shunga netsuke, sleeping mermaid and octopus · mammoth tusk netsuke from Japan · hokusai netsuke\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Netsuke","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54482502058277,"sku":"JP-CL-N1218359325","price":1180.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0758\/8829\/6229\/files\/shunga-netsuke-of-a-sleeping-mermaid-embraced-by-an-octopus-mammoth-tusk-01.jpg?v=1794582560","url":"https:\/\/japonista.com\/es\/products\/shunga-netsuke-of-a-sleeping-mermaid-embraced-by-an-octopus-mammoth-tusk","provider":"Japonista","version":"1.0","type":"link"}