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I have no clue if this a netsuke or something else because I don't know anything about them other than that they seem to be small carvings out of various substances, so hopefully someone can tell what this is. It does have some sort of mark or signature. Thanks!
@shinigami Kind of similar in style to this one maybe: https://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2006/japanese-works-of-art-prints-paintings-l06861/lot.1110.html?locale=en
Hi John,
Yes it is definitely a netzuke.
It's difficult to determine by way of the pictures if it's either ivory, bone or resin. Same applies to its age. It could be 19th century or made in the late 20th century.
If it is ivory (elephant) then there should be shreger lines (criss cross pattern). Normally visually seen around the base with naked eye or with a loupe.
Mark
Thank you John for showing the first netsuke in this forum. I always wondered when one would pop up. Could it be that collecting them is a bit outdated? There’s lots of them offered at auctions. On the auction where I bought the Guanyin they sold a collection of about 300 19th century netsuke with one third staying unsold.
I collected netsuke for a while before I changed to ceramics but found it a rather difficult field. You can invest 1000s of $ into what you think is good quality but unless you have items carved by a great master you are never sure if your collection will ever resell.
Birgit
Hi Birgit,
The are of collecting inro's and netzukes is still very much alive and kicking.
As you have already pointed out most netzukes on offer via second/third tier auction rooms are 20th century copies made in both China and Japan.
Authentic one from Meiji period and before are highly collectable and expensive especially if by a known master.
Mark
Hi Mark, I think netsuke fakes are not too difficult to detect, look at the stuff offered on Ebay. They are either machine made and modern or hand made but very simple and downright ugly. But even if you buy good 18th or 19th century quality from renowned dealers like Andy Jordan you can never be sure if you can resell them one day. The market reminds me a bit of Giovanni‘s snuff bottles. Here it’s not provenance that counts but the marks of master carvers. (Of course these were copied a lot.) Quality of carving or originality of subject isn’t so important. During the last years I have seen many authentic good quality netsuke remain unsold. I was even able to buy some from the personal collection of a netsuke book author for a decent price. I have stopped completely buying netsuke because prices seem to go down rather than up, at least for most pieces.
Birgit
Hi Birgit,
Interesting comments in your post.
I used to deal a fair bit way back in the early 80's with netzukes (mainly ivory ones). I have not done so for a number of years etc. I do however see a seller on ebay (jgardsltd) who regularly appears on Peter's newsletter and youtube. He apparently achieves imo some hefty prices. He often has some very nice examples etc.
Your absolutely correct. Most lower tier auctions have rubbish on offer. Perhaps it's the area we live in or something like that. For instance that ivory guanyin you bought that was passed. Here in Australia they are very sought after and achieve high prices. Apparently they are some sort of status symbol with the Chinese here.
On the other hand brush pots made from Huanghuali wood rarely sell here for good money, but are sought-after in the USA etc. All very odd!
Mark
Thanks for the information and perspective Mark and Birgit. I feel like I've learned a little bit over the past day or so of obsessing about netsuke for the first time. It is interesting how the signature aspect seems to be very important but then I also read where some of the best netsuke are apparently unsigned. In addition to the regional interests you already discussed, my guess as to why the market for these could be a little up and down, hit or miss, would be because they tend to be ivory, which as we know has become risky to collect, or wood, which I think sometimes doesn't get its fair due. And also because they are Japanese, which has gone down so much the past couple decades from what I have been told. But like Mark says, there does still seem to be demand for these little gems under the right circumstances. I found the international netsuke society and sent them pictures so maybe someone there will tell us about the horses. I found some others that have the same scene with a horse and foal in that position, so apparently it's a common scene depicted. I really still have no sense of how to determine quality on these. Also, fakes seem to abound and I did not pin test it yet so I don't know for sure if it is a resin copy.
Mark, I agree with you, it could be a question of where you live. I have the impression that the German market is saturated with netsuke from old collections but it could be different elsewhere. Buying or selling ivory is no problem here as long as it’s clearly antique.
Birgit
Well, here's what the experts over at the inernational netsuke Society have to say:
"The item(s) you have posted are categorised as an NLO (Netsuke Like Object). These types of works are commonly reproduced in the far east, are non Japanese, and have unreadable signatures applied."
Guess it's just a common reproduction. It's still cute though. John
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