What are Netsuke?

Netsuke are one of the few forms of pure Japanese art.  They are the accessories worn with the kimono (the traditional robe worn by both men and women) which is also uniquely Japanese.  The kimono has no pockets in which to carry small everyday items.  Netsuke were devised as a means to hang pouches, boxes, and other objects called sagemono from the sash (obi) of the kimono, enabling the wearer to carry a variety of personal belongings.  Sagemono included purses, tobacco pouches and boxes, medicine or seal cases (inro), writing kits, even clocks, books, small lanterns, and flint pouches.  

The word netsuke (ne: Root; Tsuke: to attach) indicates that early netsuke were made from natural objects and probably an evolution from earlier Chinese toggles.  The ends of the cord suspending the sagemono were threaded through a sliding bead (ojime) and then through two openings (himotoshi) in a netsuke and tied together.  Then the cord and netsuke were slipped up under the obi and the netsuke hung over the upper edge, acting as a toggle to prevent the sagemono from falling.  The ojime was used to tighten or loosen the sagemono.  This entire set was worn at the waist, slightly to the rear, functioning as a portable hip pocket.

Netsuke:  Their Development and Evolution

Netsuke might have remained simple toggles and well served their purpose.  However, two historic events stimulated their development:  the unification of Japan in 1603 under a powerful central government, the Tokugawa shogunate, that ruled until the Meiji restoration in 1867 and the introduction of tobacco in the 16th century which would later increase the demand for netsuke enormously.

The extraordinary edict of 1636 excluded foreigners (except for a few Dutch and Chinese who were allowed limited trade on an island in Nagasaki Bay) also isolated Japan from foreign ideas and influence for 231 years.  This created a concurrent period of peace during which art, particularly miniature art, flourished and developed distinctive national characteristics.

In 1617 the shogunate reorganized the Japanese social system to define class distinctions.  Daimyo (land owners) and samurai (military) were ranked at the top; then farmers, artisans, and merchants in that order.  Sumptuary laws discouraged extravagance by controlling clothing, food, housing, social functions, etc., and by establishing codes of conduct and privileges for each class in the hierarchy.  These laws which forbade the wearing of jewelry and other unnecessary forms of personal adornment, indirectly encouraged the use of netsuke.  An earlier edict had stipulated that only stamped signatures were valid, necessitating use of netsuke and inro by samurai and aristocrats to hold the seal and ink pad for signing documents.  These necessary and fashionable "adornments" were quickly adopted by the upper class.

The growing merchant class prospered from the increased commercial activity of Edo (Tokyo), seat of the new government, and from managing the financial affairs of daimyo and samurai, who were required to maintain residences and retinues in Edo, but who deemed monetary transactions to be beneath their rank.  the sumptuary laws prohibited the merchants from dressing, eating, or entertaining as lavishly as their new wealth permitted; thus they began to wear increasingly opulent sagemono and netsuke that rivaled those of the samurai and aristocrats.

Early in the 18th century, the century-old law banning the cultivation and selling of tobacco was repealed.  This had a tremendous impact on the development of netsuke.  Smoking became a national habit, creating an unprecedented need and demand for tobacco pouches and netsuke among men of every social rank.  Matching sets of pouch, ojime, and netsuke became universally fashionable.  Those who could afford them had many ensembles, each appropriate for a specific occasion.  The fashion served every man, regardless of his wealth.

The decline of sagemono and netsuke began after Commodore Perry sailed into the harbor at Uraga in 1853 and negotiated the treaty which opened trade with Japan and ended Japan's long period of isolation.  As a country became Westernized, the daily wearing of netsuke declined.  cigarettes replaced the traditional small-bowl pipe and its accouterments and suits with pockets grew popular with businessmen.  The netsuke activity during the late 19th and 20th centuries was characterized by the formations of most of the famous European collections.  However, as the carvers shifted from their declining home demand to address the export market, both the quality and demand waned.

Contemporary Netsuke

The last half of the 20th century has seen an amazing re-emergence of netsuke carving and carvers, not only Japanese, but from all over the world, notably the USA and England.  Today there are nearly 100 carvers working in nine countries.  They provide an unbroken continuum of this 350 year-old art form into the 21st century, while bringing remarkable and refreshing new concepts, materials, and techniques that have excited collectors from many countries around the world.