17th /18th Century Ivory Doctor's Lady Art Deco Netsuke

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17th /18th Century Ivory Doctor's Lady Art Deco Netsuke

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Sold Date: 12/21/2007
Channel: Online Auction
Source: eBay
Category: Ethnic, Folk & Native American Art

Age lines as shown do not detract from the value of a piece of ivory. Some even prefer pieces with age lines as it provides instant confirmation that the piece is old elephant ivory from long before the ban. The ivory in the picture above is over 150 years old

This the most Spectacular, Breathtaking 17th / 18th Century Piece of Art ~ with detail that is unsurpassed Absolutely Fantastic Specimine of a Doctor's Lady Netsuke in as Absolutely as Near Mint as you can get condition, I would even go as far as to say Mint Y!

One of a Kind, Museum Quality ! This is not one of the Replica's Claiming age ~ Take a look at the Colors, The circular patterns are amazing to the hourglass shape of her body, and the breast and nipples are amazing how the circles have aged on them. The Luster and exceptionally smooth surface are Stunning.

The edges of the Feather wich resemble a Knife or Dagger, are rather sharp! The box is old and tattered and has cotton under the pink cloth on the bottom w she is reclining. The wood box is very light and a strange wood.

** I WILL consider all offers **

Ship with in the US for $12.85

Sorry, I can not sell this outside of the US.

~ Scroll down to PHOTOS

Below is some information you may find helpfull:

Due to shortages in available Ivory for artists, other substance have always been sought. The trade in Elephant Ivory has nearly come to a complete stop. The master carvers of China and Japan have turned to alternative substances for the making of Snuff Bottles, Netsuke, and other works of Art. Mammoth Ivory is currently being excavated in areas of Northern Siberia. This is from Mammoth Elephants and Mastodons that live 10,000 to 2 million years ago. The frozen glaciers have preserved t remains in near perfect condition. Eventually, the supply of mammoth ivory will begin to run out and the prices will rise dramatically. This will make Mammoth Ivory pieces more expensive to buy and could also put the elephant in danger of poaching once again.

Elephant Ivory and Mammoth Ivory share a unique grain pattern known as Schreger Lines. These lines can help to identify if a piece is elephant or mammoth ivory. The test itself is actually only 100% accurate when viewing a complete section of the tusk and using the measurements on the outermost section of the tusk. Perhaps the best way to tell the difference is to know the sources you buy from and make sure that they know their sources. The whole tusks travel the world accompanied by inspection certificates that certify the material and subsequent certificates are issued for the final products carved from the tusks. Below are some pictures to help you identify your items

A Doctor's lady is a small figurine depicting a nude or nearly nude female, usually said to have been used by traditional Chinese male physicians to allow a female patient to indicate the location of her discomfort in a modest fashion, without showing or pointing to her own body. "Doctor's ladies" may be made from various materials such as ivory, resin, semiprecious stone, or soapstone, and are typically from 10 to 25 cm long, often with a base in the form of a couch. Examples are known from the Ming and Qing periods. Smaller amulets of the same design are common, but many of these are probably netsuke or ornamental amulets, not designed for practical use.

Japanese artists starting in the 17th century cleverly invented the miniature sculptures known as netsuke (Japanese:æ ¹ä»~) to serve a very practical function. (The two Japanese characters ne+tsuke mean "root" and "to suspend or hang" in reference to the roots and twigs used as toggles before carved netsuke were produced.) Traditional Japanese garments - robes called kosode and kimono - had no pockets. Men who wore them needed a place to keep personal belongings such as pipes, tobacco, money, seals, or medicines.

The elegant solution was to place such objects in containers (called sagemono ) hung by cords from the robes' sa...