A rare ivory netsuke of a mountain god. Late 19th century - image-1

Lot 248 Dα

A rare ivory netsuke of a mountain god. Late 19th century

Auction 1036 - overview Cologne
14.06.2014, 10:00 - The Kolodotschko Collection of Netsuke I
Estimate: 1.500 € - 2.000 €
Result: 1.830 € (incl. premium)

A rare ivory netsuke of a mountain god. Late 19th century

The composite long-haired creature with the body of a snake stands upright on scaly legs with hooves and belly pushed forward. The scaly arms end in four-clawed hands and flames emanate from the joints. The humanoid head with opened mouth is all the more fierce for the deep-set eyes and the two curved horns.
Height 7.9 cm

The carving is based on an illustration in the Sôken kishô although its ferocity has been softened both in facial expression and body proportions. The illustration in the Sôken kishô does not have a caption but nevertheless this creature has been identified as a shokuin (literally “light and shade”). In 2001 Joe Earl questioned this identification and put forth the suggestion, that the mythical four-legged creature is the god of Mount Shitsugo (chin. Qiwu) illustrated in the Shanhaijing (jap. Sankaikyô). The illustration shows a creature with a chicken-like head, a beak, chicken legs, a scarf around its shoulders, and a leopard skin around the hips held together by a band. However also this identification must be questioned. The scaly body of a snake or dragon, and the demonic but humanoid head being the main characteristics of this creature, the identification still remains open. It was Yoshimura Shûzan who probably was the first to create a novel fantastic creature by combining different traits and using the Sankaikyô illustrations of various sanjin (mountain gods) for inspiration.