Tosen Nagoya School Wood Netsuke
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
first half of the 19th century
Masterfully carved in an exceptionally compact and tactile form, a muscular oni curled tightly into a near-spherical ball as he desperately shields himself from the roasted beans thrown during the oni-yarai ceremony at Setsubun.
His powerful limbs fold and interlock around the body, the feet drawn tightly inward, while his grimacing face is compressed at the center of the composition and framed by finely incised locks of hair. The squinting eyes inlaid in pale horn and the furred eyes convey a wonderfully comic expression of distress. Several roasted beans are picked out in contrasting light-colored inlays across the head and body. The underside reveals the neatly incised tiger-skin loincloth, with the natural himotoshi formed by the limbs.
Signed TOSEN in partially worn ukibori characters within a rectangular reserve.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Physical characteristics
- Material (listing wording)
- wood
- Dimensions or weight (listing wording)
- 3.1 cm
Identification
- Source note
- Auction-house description published on Invaluable. Attribution and measurements describe the photographed example; independent type authentication remains research required.
- Listing object ID
- 206787882
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Independent confirmation of type attribution and auction-house statements remains research required.