JOBUN: A VERY RARE WOOD NETSUKE OF OKAME WITH A SAKE SAUCER

JOBUN: A VERY RARE WOOD NETSUKE OF OKAME WITH A SAKE SAUCER

By Jobun, signed Jobun 如文
Japan, Edo (Tokyo), late 18th century, Edo period (1615-1868)

The Shinto goddess of mirth depicted here kneeling, with long, finely incised hair, jovially laughing, one hand holding the cowl of her neatly incised, voluminous robe, the other cradling a large, shallow sake saucer as she balances it on her raised knee, visibly inebriated, the expression carved with great humor in the typical manner of the artist. Large and generously excavated himotoshi underneath and signed JOBUN.

HEIGHT 4 cm

Condition: Very good condition with minor surface wear and occasional light scratches.

This appears to be the only Okame recorded by Jobun (Fuld's Netsuke and Ojime Index only lists one example of an Okame mask, formerly in the Trumpf collection, and now in the Linden Museum Stuttgart, inventory number OA 18937).

Auction comparison:
Compare a related wood netsuke by Jobun, carved from the same type of light-toned boxwood and with similar facial features, at Bonhams, Netsuke from the Collection of Joseph and Elena Kurstin, 16 December 2022, New York, lot 5 (sold for USD 9,562.5).