By Terence Ryle
Writing of a mixed-quality netsuke collection bought by his wealthy 19th century kinsman, Charles Ephrussi, Edmund de Waal said: “They are the first things [among Charles’ treasures] that have any connection to everyday life, even an exotic everyday life. They are wonderful, highly sensual, of course, but they are not princely like his [Charles’] Medici bed or his Marie Antoinette lacquers. They are for touching.”
Doubtless, public awareness of the netsuke – objects that can combine immensely skilled craftsmanship and huge visual and tactile appeal – grew with the publication of Hare with Amber Eyes. But in truth, this is one of several areas of the Japanese market that has stuttered in recent years because of the twists of collecting fashion and an uncompromising ivory policy in the US.