Private Collection | Edo
Period Silver Bronze Manju Netsuke
Asahina
Saburo
Kasazuri Biki (Armour Tearing)
Signature: unsigned, Circa: 18th-early 19th Centruy
H
1.8 in.(4.5cm), W 1.8 in.(2.5cm), D 1 in.(4.5cm)
Condition: very good! Finely
cast and finished silver and bronze manju “samurai hero” theme netsuke, quite
heavy, with deep tarnish and polished highlights creating a superb patina, skilled
hand finishing with excellent detailing of hair and features, various textures
of fabric and metal, and forceful rendering of expression, especially that of
Asahina, whose fearsome eyes are all that can be seen of his face. The manju depicts
the famous Kabuki “armor tearing scene,” in which the legendary samurai strongman
Asahina Saburo struggles with Soga no Goro over the armor that Goro has brought
to their meeting. The play was first presented in 1683. On the reverse of the
piece is a silver ring for fastening, around which unfolds a scene of the samurai
Nitta Tadatsune. In 1193, while on a hunting trip near Mount Fuji, he and some
friends discovered a subterranean cave. The others feared to enter, but Nitta
took up a torch and went ahead to find the goddess Kannon appearing to him in
a large cavern, manifesting to praise his bravery.
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