AN AMUSING EDO SCHOOL WOOD SHUNGA NETSUKE OF A MAN CUTTING A HYOTANUnsignedJapan, Edo (Tokyo), first half of 19th century, Edo period (1615-1868)The man wearing a half-shouldered robe, his hair tied in typical Edo fashion, the expression amusingly crafted as he cuts through a large hyotan (double gourd) secured with his two feet between his legs. Rather amusingly, the hyotan takes a distinct phallic shape in the process. The wood bearing a fine, dark patina. Large, asymmetrical himotoshi underneath.HEIGHT 3.1 cm, LENGTH 3.6 cmCondition: Very good condition, minor wear, some tiny surface nicks here and there. Fine, dark patina.Provenance: From the collection of Gaston Lazard (1878-1956) and his wife Jane Levy (1886-1985) and thence by descent within the same family.Auction/Literature comparison:Compare to a closely related wood netsuke by Shuraku at Sotheby’s, Fine Netsuke Including Property from the Collection of Alan R. Liss, 2 September 1993, Chicago, lot 273. Another closely related wood netsuke by Masayuki is illustrated in Meinertzhagen, Frederick / Lazarnick, George (1986) MCI, Part A, p. 492. Another closely related wood netsuke by Miwa is illustrated in Arakawa, Hirokazu (1983) The Go Collection of Netsuke. Tokyo National Museum, pp. 104-105, no. 190/191.