A JAPANESE WOOD NETSUKE OF MONKEYS

A JAPANESE WOOD NETSUKE OF MONKEYS
EDO OR MEIJI, 19TH CENTURY

Cleverly carved as four monkeys with two heads: one pair seated and the others kneeling on all fours; one covering its mouth with its hands and the other cradling its right ear, the gestures reminiscent of those of the sambiki saru (the Three Wise Monkeys); with a large himotoshi in the centre, 4.8cm.

The model for this netsuke is probably the Chinese 'sixi tongzhi' twin boys. The children are often represented in a similiar entwined position, which represents the principle of ancient Chinese cosmology known as liangyi sheng sixiang, in which two primary forces (yin and yang) generate four images.