A fine netsuke of a South Sea islander, also known as kurombojin. Jin means man and kurombo probably derived from the Ceylonese capital Colombo. The islander is carved from ebony wood, reflecting his deep black skin, with a non-Asian face and bald head with long curly hair on the back and sides. He is almost naked and only wearing a loincloth which is inlaid in ivory. The man is a diver and has salvaged a massive piece of coral which he is holding between his hands and feet and is fondling it with a very amusing and pleased expression. Foreigners were a popular theme in netsuke art as they aroused curiosity in the Japanese mind, since Japan was virtually closed off (with rare exceptions) from the world since the beginning of the Edo period. Therefore, not much was known about these enigmatic islanders, and their features were often exaggerated, as in this netsuke, to poke fun at them. The irregular himotoshi are found at the back, one of them ringed in ivory. The highly contrasting colors of the ebony, ivory and the bright orange coral are pleasing to the eye.

Category:

Netsuke

Subcategory:

-

Subject:

Figural

Material:

Wood Coral Mixed media

Age/Country:

19th Century

Artist:

-

Provenance/Owner:

Galerie Zacke

Signed:

unsigned

Type:

Katabori

Height:

43mm mm

Width:

mm

Depth:

mm

ID number: