Japanese Painted Ceramic Hotei Okimono with Concealed Shunga Underside, Smiling God and Leaf Fan, 16 cm
Japanese Painted Ceramic Hotei Okimono with Concealed Shunga Underside, Smiling God and Leaf Fan, 16 cm
- Dispatch
- Prepared and sent from Tokyo within 7–14 days, often sooner, or as arranged
- Arrival
- United States · usually 4–7 days after dispatch, insured and tracked Check the Shipping Flowchart here
- Import
Duties and customs · View the estimate
A guide for this piece: about $30, based on the 10% US charge on the declared value of goods made in Japan.
The final figure is set by US Customs and depends on where the piece was made and the kind of object it is. Many antiques over a century old carry no ordinary duty; most jewellery and leather goods add a single-digit rate.
With EMS, any charge is collected by your postal service on delivery. For pieces of significant value we can often arrange duties prepaid before dispatch.
How the estimate is reached · Ask for a figure on this piece
- Character
- Ornate 7.5 of 10 ·
- Replies
- Within one Tokyo business day · Ask the curator team
- Guarantee
- Authenticity guaranteed · How we grade
| Figure | cm | in |
|---|---|---|
| Width | 16.0 cm | 6.3 in |
| Height | 8.8 cm | 3.5 in |
Every piece is measured by hand, in centimetres as Japan measures. Please allow 1–2 cm (about ½ inch) for the give of the material and the hand that held the tape.
Where each figure is taken · View the plate
Object, sculpture and ceramics
Condition report
Very Good
- Giftable
- Mint
- Excellent
- Very Good
- Good
- Honest Wear
- As Found
Good Fortune, Turned Over
From above, Hotei, god of contentment, beams over his great belly with a leaf fan in hand. Lift him and the god of plenty gives way to a pair of lovers asleep in each other's arms, modelled in relief inside the hollow base: the old warai-e joke that abundance and pleasure share one house.
Best for: Collectors of the Seven Lucky Gods and of concealed-scene shunga figures
Condition notes
No cracks or chips. Light surface dirt, small spots and rubbing consistent with age, most visible on the face and the black robe.
Grades, ratings and commentary are given to the best of our ability, knowledge and experience, and condition remains partly a matter of personal perception. What we stand behind without qualification is authenticity, truthful description and provenance, to the best of our knowledge. How we grade
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Considered offers only. The Desk replies personally to figures made in good faith; those set far below the asking price receive no reply.
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Hotei, the laughing god of contentment, sits in a black robe with a leaf fan across his belly; turn him over and a pair of lovers lies asleep in the hollow beneath.
This piece belongs to the private room of the house and is shown to adults only.
The Piece
Hotei, the most cheerful of the Seven Lucky Gods, is the wandering monk of plenty and of a contented heart. Here he is modelled lying back, eyes closed in laughter, white brows and whiskers picked out in fine brushwork, his terracotta skin set against a matt black robe edged in ochre and white.
The joke lies underneath. The base is hollow, and inside it a whole scene is modelled in relief and painted in bright enamel colours: a courtesan in an orange kimono scattered with white blossoms and a man with a shaven crown and topknot, asleep in each other's arms beneath a checked quilt, the whole framed by a pink rim. Figures of the kind, fuzoku ningyo, carry the spirit of warai-e, the laughing pictures of the Edo print world: good fortune above, pleasure below.
Details
- Subject: Hotei with a leaf fan; lovers concealed in the base
- Type: Okimono, decorative figure with a concealed scene
- Material: Ceramic, painted by hand
- Height: About 8.8 cm (3.5 in)
- Width: About 16 cm (6.3 in)
- Depth: About 13 cm (5.1 in)
- Maker: Not recorded
- Date: Undated
- Made in: Japan
Measured by hand; please allow a gentle margin of about 1 to 2 cm (0.5 in).
Condition
- No cracks or chips.
- Light surface dirt, small spots and rubbing consistent with age, chiefly on the face and the black robe.
- Every photograph is part of the description.
Condition grade B (very good) on the Japanese scale; see Japanese condition ranks, explained.
Authenticity & Care
Offered as a painted ceramic okimono by an unrecorded maker; no date or workshop is certified. Dust with a soft, dry brush; never wash painted surfaces.
Delivery from Japan
Wrapped in tissue and foam and boxed with padding on every side, then 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 published policy.
Considered offers are welcome through Send an Offer, and each one is reviewed personally. Further pieces of the kind are kept in Shunga and Hidden Arts and among our Japanese dolls.
Concierge
Collecting the Seven Lucky Gods or hidden-scene figures? Our Hunting Salon™ locates such pieces across Japan's private collector circles, then inspects, documents and delivers them to you. Begin a Hunting Salon™ request.
Collectors also search: Hotei shunga okimono · concealed scene figure · lucky god erotic ceramic
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