{"product_id":"shunga-netsuke-of-lovers-upon-a-spread-kimono-chrysanthemum-and-peony-engraving-mammoth-tusk","title":"Shunga Netsuke of Lovers upon a Spread Kimono, Chrysanthemum and Peony Engraving, Mammoth Tusk","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"jp-product\" data-world=\"Japan Luxury Archive\"\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"jp-lede\"\u003eA man with a shaven crown and topknot bends over his reclining lover, the pair resting on a kimono opened beneath them like a field of chrysanthemums and peonies.\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\u003eThis is the largest and most ambitious of the couple groups, six centimetres long and composed to be read from every side. From the front one sees two faces: his intent, hers turned away in pleasure, her coiffure still dressed with combs and flowered pins. From behind, the composition becomes pure textile, the robe falling in soft folds that the carver has engraved with flower heads and filled with red, violet and green.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe underside is finished as carefully as the top, the spread garment forming a continuous decorated base that carries a red seal signature. Hair is cut strand by strand and inked, and the bodies are polished to the warm gloss that only tusk takes.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eIconography and Meaning\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe image comes from the ukiyo-e album, where lovers are almost never shown unclothed: it is the tumble of patterned silk around them that carries the luxury and the season. Chrysanthemum speaks of autumn and long life, peony of wealth and spring, so the robe wraps the couple in a whole year of good fortune.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTo the eye trained on European sculpture the appeal is immediate and a little startling: a complete composition, finished on every face including the one that rests on the table, in an object that weighs no more than a few coins. It was this union of intimacy and perfection that made the netsuke the emblem of Japonisme, and that keeps it at the centre of Western collections of Japanese art.\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 Lovers reclining on an opened kimono\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 red, violet, green and black\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eLength:\u003c\/strong\u003e 60 mm (2.4 in)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eWidth:\u003c\/strong\u003e 30 mm (1.2 in)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eHeight:\u003c\/strong\u003e 35 mm (1.4 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\u003eNo conspicuous marks, chips or repairs are recorded.\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\u003eA (excellent)\u003c\/strong\u003e on the Japanese scale; see \u003ca href=\"\/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=\"\/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=\"\/collections\/shunga-hidden-arts\"\u003eShunga and Hidden Arts\u003c\/a\u003e and in the wider room of \u003ca href=\"\/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=\"\/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, lovers upon a spread kimono · mammoth tusk netsuke from Japan · ukiyo-e netsuke\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Netsuke","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54482486264101,"sku":"JP-CL-X1133105019","price":6150.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0758\/8829\/6229\/files\/shunga-netsuke-of-lovers-upon-a-spread-kimono-chrysanthemum-and-peony-engraving-mammoth-tu-01.jpg?v=1794582437","url":"https:\/\/japonista.com\/products\/shunga-netsuke-of-lovers-upon-a-spread-kimono-chrysanthemum-and-peony-engraving-mammoth-tusk","provider":"Japonista","version":"1.0","type":"link"}