Inro With Netsuke Depicting Daruma

 Lovely inro with plum blossom design in lacquer with a kagamibuta netsuke in ivory and brass depicting Daruma. The cording and ojime are incorrect and only serve to keep the peices together.

 Daruma is often shown in a comical light in Japanese art. Daruma was the founder of Zen Bhuddism and there are many legends that surround him, one being that when he fell asleep during a session of meditation, he cut off his eyelids, threw them away and the first tea plants sprouted where the eyelids landed. He is often shown with wide open eyes and no arms or legs.






The iro appears to have only two compartments until a hidden compartment is discovered under a small tray.

Netsuke with Dragon and Children

This is a intricately carved netsuke depicting two children and a dog inside with a dragon wrapped around the top. It is signed Sanko. Netsuke is 1 7/8 inches tall.

Locust Netsuke

Netsuke are small carvings often made out of ivory, bone, rosewood and ebony. They were used with tobacco pouches and small boxes called inro. The netsuke would act as a toggle and keep the pouches from sliding through the obi on the kimono. During the Edo period, the craft of netsuke reached it's height. My father had a fairly large collection and the below netsuke is one of my personal favorites. It is of an elegantly carved locust in ivory.