JOBUN: A SUPERB WOOD NETSUKE OF A HATCHING TENGU (TENGU NO TOMAGO)By Jobun, signed Jobun 如文Japan, Edo (Tokyo), c. 1780, Edo period (1615-1868)The mythical winged creature clambering out of his broken egg with delicately incised ‘cracks’ using its weak, undeveloped arms, the ‘hands’ superbly detailed and appearing like out of a science-fiction movie, the head and one wing with neatly detailed webs are already free, the humanoid face with a hooked nose and finely incised brushed-back hair, the eyes inlaid with dark wood. The underside with generously excavated, asymmetrical himotoshi and the signature JOBUN.LENGTH 3.8 cmCondition: One arm with an old restoration, the egg with a minor age crack, otherwise in good condition. Provenance: Ex-collection Joe Kurstin. Dr. M. Joseph ‘Joe’ Kurstin (1931-2021) was a prominent Miami ophthalmologist who arguably built one of the greatest netsuke collections of all time. He was known by netsuke and inro lovers worldwide and made many lifelong friends in this tight-knit community. He published several books and articles on the subject and generously lent his collection for exhibitions at the Yale University Gallery, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Epcot Center at Disney World, and The Tobacco and Salt Museum, Tokyo.Literature comparison: Compare a closely related wood netsuke of a hatching tengu by Jobun illustrated in Sydney L. Moss Ltd. (2000) Myth, Reality, and Magical Transformation: Aesthetics and Connoisseurship in Japanese Netsuke, no. 18.Auction comparison: Compare a closely related wood netsuke of a hatching tengu at Lempertz, Netsuke aus der Sammlung Albert Brockhaus, 27 June 2020, Cologne, lot 458 (sold for 8,750 EUR).