HOKYUDO ITSUMIN: A SUPERB WOOD NETSUKE OF GAMA SENNIN WITH TWO FROGS By Hokyudo Itsumin, signed Hokyudo Itsumin 逸民逢丘堂 to 刀 Japan, Edo (Tokyo), mid-19th century, Edo period (1615-1868) Superbly and amusingly carved as two warty toads, probably adult and offspring, sandwiching Gama Sennin, the immortal facing to the left and screaming, while holding one back and one front leg of the small toad on his back. The larger toad underneath is visibly squashed from the weight of the two, its mouth agape. The details are extraordinarily well-carved, the wood is attractively stained dark. All eyes are inlaid in dark horn. The underside with the superbly carved splayed feet, large asymmetrical himotoshi, and neatly incised signature HOKYUDO ITSUMIN to [carved by Hokyudo itsumin]. HEIGHT 4.1 cm Condition: Superb condition with hardly any wear. Provenance: French private collection, purchased at Christie's, 19 November 2003, Paris, lot 110. This may be the netsuke described in Joly, Henri L. (1912) The W. L. Behrens Collection, Part 1, Netsuke, no. 685 (unillustrated). Literature comparison: At least two similar, yet decidedly different, examples of Gama Sennin by Hokyudo Itsumin are known. One is in Joly, H. L. (1966) Catalogue of the H. Seymour Trower Collection of Japanese Art, pl. B, no. 103, and another was offered at Sotheby's, The Betty Jahss Collection of Netsuke - Part II, 14 November 1991, London, lot 41.