Page 39 - Fine Japanese Art November 29, 2019 Galerie Zacke

27 | AKASOFU GYOKKO: FUJIWARA NO YASUMASA
By Akasofu Gyokko, signed Gyokko
Japan, Meiji period (1868-1912)

The heavily cast two-color patinated bronze okimono in distinct
Miyao style with its gilt accents and fine engraving superbly
portraying the military commander Fujiwara no Yasumasa. Fujiwara
no Yasumasa plays a flute on the Ichihara Moor, wears an eboshi
and is clad in a wind-swept hitatare garment with phoenix crests
and mitsugashira hidari tomoe mons picked out in massive
gilding. His piercing eyes are inlaid in silver and bronze. He carries
a removable katana sword. The statue is supported on a carved
openwork wood stand embellished with floral scrolls. The gilt
signature cartouche on the back reads GYOKKO.
HEIGHT 35 cm (including the stand)
WEIGHT 3.8 kilograms (including the stand)
Condition: Superb condition with only minor wear and traces of
use. The stand with some abrasions, a fine natural patina, minute
losses and age cracks. The statue still retains the original Katana.
Rare!
Provenance: From an English private collection. Acquired in Italy
on August 9th, 1976, at Galleria Morosini, according to and old
handwritten collector label at the base.

Auction result comparison: Compare with a closely related figure
of Fujiwara no Yasumasa at Bonham’s San Francisco on December
9th, 2008, in Fine Asian Works of Art, lot 5228, sold for USD
$19.200,-.
Estimate EUR 8.000,-
Starting price EUR 4.000,-

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