Netsuke
Artist
Maker unknown
(Japanese)
Datec. 1873
MediumCarved ivory
DimensionsOverall: 1 1/2 x 1 7/8in. (3.8 x 4.8cm)
ClassificationsPERSONAL ARTIFACTS
Credit LineGift of Neilson and Joseph Rudd in memory of Thomas Brown Rudd and Helen Neilson Rudd
Terms
Object number66.40
DescriptionManju style carved ivory netsuke; depicts a man with a monkey; reverse side is left unpolished.On View
Not on viewCollections
Copyright<a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/"><img alt="Creative Commons License" style="border-width:0" src="https://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-nc/4.0/80x15.png" /></a><br />This work is licensed under a <a rel="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License</a>.
Label TextNetsuke were invented in seventeenth century Japan as a type of decorative fastener. Japanese men used netsuke to suspend various pouches and containers from their obi sashes by a silk cord. Netsuke had to be small and not too heavy, yet bulky enough to do the job. They needed to be compact with no sharp protruding edges, yet also strong and hardwearing. Above all, they had to have the means by which to attach a cord. Netsuke were made in a variety of forms, this is an example of the manju type. Manju netsuke were shaped and named after a type of rounded sweet dumpling filled with bean paste. They are usually a solid oval, rectangular or square shape and these compact forms were well suited to being worn next to the body.
