Bushô, ca. 1850–1880
MediumIvory
Height3,8 cm
About the workThis netsuke figure depicts Bushṓ, one of the heroes of the Chinese novel "Suikoden" from around 1330 (engl. "The Water Margin"), who fought for justice and against imperial corruption. As small figures, called Netsuke, they were used as counterweights to attach Netsuke 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 2005-92
