MINKO: A SUPERB WOOD NETSUKE OF A RECUMBENT HORSEBy Tanaka Juntoku Minko (1735-1816), signed Minko 岷江 with kakihanJapan, Tsu, late 18th to early 19th century, Edo period (1615-1868)Published: Wertheim, Stanley (Winter 2008) Auctions, International Netsuke Society Journal, Vol. 28, No.4, p 41.Finely carved in a recumbent pose with the legs drawn in for compactness, the body slightly emaciated with subtly detailed spine and incised ribs, the attentive face with inlaid gilt-brass eyes with dark pupils and framed by a full mane which is finely incised, as is the tail slung to one side. Himotoshi between the tail and body. The underside signed in typically boldly incised characters MINKO with a kakihan.LENGTH 4.5 cmCondition: Very good condition, minor wear and traces of use, few tiny nicks here and there. Provenance: Bonhams, Japanese Works of Art, 19 September 2008, New York, lot 5100 (sold for 14,400 USD). French private collection, acquired from the above.Tanaka Minko produced a number of netsuke depicting recumbent horses, generally in boxwood, although a few were made from ebony. The present example is a good example of the genre, with a finely-carved head and mane and the eyes typically inlaid with giilt-brass with inlaid dark pupils.Museum comparison: Compare a closely related kaki wood netsuke of a recumbent horse by Tanaka Minko, formerly in the Trumpf collection and now in the Linden Museum Stuttgart, inventory number OA 19042.Auction comparison: Compare a closely related wood netsuke of a recumbent horse by Tanaka Minko at Bonhams, Fine Netsuke from the Adrienne Barbanson Collection, 13 May 2013, London, lot 15 (sold for 7,500 GBP).