Manju-netsuke,Tennin, 19th century
MediumWalrus ivory
Height3,9 cm
About the workThis small object, called Manju netsuke, shows Tennin the Buddhist figure of salvation. They are often depicted as seductresses playing music. Netsuke with openwork carvings are among the rarer forms of their kind. They are counterweights used to attach containers for medicine, tobacco or money to the belt of the kimono, known as the "obi". Predominantly made of ivory and boxwood, the objects were first created in the seventeenth century and evolved into status symbols. When Japan opened up to the West in the 1860s, kimonos went out of fashion and so did netsuke.
AccessionGift of Bruno Werdelmann 2004
Provenance[...]; bis 25.10.2004 Prof. Dr. Dr. hc. Bruno Werdelmann (1920 – 2010), Ratingen; 25.10.2004 erworben durch Schenkung von Bruno Werdelmann
Inventory numberP 2005-138
