NEW YORK – On Wednesday, January 17, starting at 6 pm Eastern time, Jasper52 will conduct a sale titled Asian Antiques: Scrolls, Weaponry and More. Its 132 lots include limited-edition prints, netsuke, ikebana baskets, Satsuma vases, writing sets, scholar’s rocks, sculptures, components of Japanese swords, brush rests, wrist rests, hair combs, masks, glass art, sake cups, and implements needed for a Japanese tea ceremony. Absentee and Internet live bidding will be available through LiveAuctioneers.
While there are several examples of netsuke in the sale lineup, a particularly unusual netsuke dating to the 19th century leads the pack. Fashioned from bronze or brass and taking the form of a rice cake, it does more than serve as a mere toggle on a kimono sash. It unscrews and opens to reveal a portable shokudai, or candlestick, the parts for which are assembled out of a telescopic stem. The cleverly designed piece, which is estimated at $667-$725, also includes a drip pan and tongs for extinguishing a candle.
Another 19th-century Asian object described as ‘unusual’ is a bronze piece topped by a two-horned chimera that does double duty as a scroll weight and a brush rest. Emblazoned on the bottom are two Japanese characters that mean Takusai, referring to a family of bronze workers who lived on Sado Island in Japan’s Nigata Prefecture and produced at least six generations of artisans who used that name. Measuring five and a half inches long, it is estimated at $690-$750.
A third highlight of note dating to the 19th century is a Satsuma vase boasting a painted enamel scene of the Buddha surrounded by seven of his rakan, or original disciples. A gold dragon, rendered in relief, ‘protects’ the Buddha by encircling the vase, its open jaws hovering over his haloed head. Described in the lot notes as having a ‘Great patina, very pleasant feel of age, in excellent condition,’ it is estimated at $455-$495.
19th-century Satsuma vase decorated with an enamel painting of the Buddha with several disciples, estimated at $455-$495 at Jasper52.
19th-century Japanese bronze scroll weight or brush rest topped by a two-horned chimera and signed by Takusai, estimated at $690-$750 at Jasper52.
19th-century bronze or brass rice cake-form netsuke that contains a portable candlestick with drip pan and extinguisher, estimated at $667-$725 at Jasper52.