Netsuke in the shape of a reclining spotted cat. Cats in Japan and China are seen as belonging to the female principle, the yin force. In general, cats are reportedly not popular because they are believed to possess more or less magical powers, and geishas are usually called neko precisely because of their "enchanting attractiveness". One of the explanations for the cat's traditionally low status is that when the Buddha died, it is said that all the animals cried and mourned, except the cat and the snake. The cat is also a rare motif in older visual art. Some appear in mythology with multiple tails, a sign of even greater magical power. As with foxes and raccoons/badgers (tanuki), cats are believed to be able to transform in various ways and then commit negative acts against humans. One such story is called Nabeshima's Vampire Cat and describes a prince who became possessed by a cat with two tails, who killed his favorite concubine, dragged her body under the porch where it buried her, and then transformed itself into the concubine. As the cat then approached the prince with caresses and embraces, it gradually sucked blood from the prince until it was discovered and fled and was finally killed. Litt.: Edmunds, W H: Pointers and Clues... London 1934, pp 302-305.
The kimono having no pockets, accessories have to be carried somehow. Women could put small objects in their sleeves and sash, whereas men, mainly, would hang their various boxes, pipes and brush cases on a cord at their belt. The portable objects are called sagemono. Accessories became identity-forming status objects and an important part of men´s fashion, a world in miniature with a wealth of subjects. Various kinds of artistically crafted sagemono are known from the 17th century. In addition to boxes for tobacco, cases for personal seals (inro) are one of the best-known types. Literally translated, an inro is a basket (ro) containing a seal (in). Only sealed signatures were legally valid, and so samurai and merchants, for example, needing seal stamps had to carry them in small cases. This was the origin of “seal baskets” (inro), which soon came to be used primarily for carrying medicine. These accessories varied in appearance according to the wearer’s taste and wealth, as well as fashion trends. When Western dress became popular during the Meiji period (1868-1912), there was less need for these portable objects, and they were divided up into their constituent parts (with toggles kept apart) and sold to westerners.
(Based on the text for the exhibition catalogue Japan. Artefacts and images tell the story. 2011).
The function of the netsuke item is to be a counterweight to the "hanging things" (sagemono) worn with the kimono by the men. Common hanging items were various boxes, for example medicine boxes (inro) and tobacco pouches. Netsuke roughly means "fixed root" and early netsuke (before the late 17th century) were probably natural, unprocessed roots and the like. From the 18th century they were made more representative and often in wood or ivory. Eventually, the artists began to sign their netsuke.
(Based on the text for the exhibition Japan. Artefacts and images tell the story. 2011). /PH
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