Page 49 - 2021 March 16th Japanese and Korean Art, Christie's New York City

31 MITSUTA HARUO (B. 1980)

Okayadokari (Coenobita)

The bronze and silver articulated sculpture of
a hermit crab finely constructed of numerous
hammered parts jointed togather with
movable antennae, limbs and body
3¿ in. (7.9 cm.) long
With original wood box sealed Mitsuta Haruo

$6,000-7,000

Because of the complicated structure of the spiral shell,
the hermit crab is very difficult to model. There are
some very fine examples of articulated hermit crabs
from the Edo period, including a hermit crab in the
collection of the British Museum. The spiral conch shell
was a popular design for samurai helmets, because
its hard shell represents armor or good protection. A
fine hammered iron helmet in spiral shell form is in the
collection of the Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. The
conch shell, horagai in Japanese, is an important symbol
in Buddhism and is one of the Eight Buddhist Emblems.
It is seen as a symbol of the extended sound of the
transmission of Buddhist teachings, and is particularly
associated with Tibetan Buddhism.