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Netsuke (Mother and Child)
Abstract
Description
Netsuke were functional fashion accessories, widely used in Japan during the Edo Period (1615-1868). Traditional garments in Japan had no pockets, but items could be suspended from the obi (a belt-like sash) by a cord. The cord was attached to a small toggle, the netsuke, which was tucked under the obi so that it hung over the top to fasten the cord. The bustling urban consumer culture of the period led to an explosion of creativity and astonishing craftsmanship in this tradition of lively miniature sculpture.With changes in fashion in the Meiji Period, netsuke became unnecessary, but the tradition of miniature sculpture continued with okimono, similar to netsuke in form but made as purely decorative pieces The woman carries a cloth-wrapped bundle and a tea kettle.