By Takamura Koun (1852-1934), sealed Takamura Koun
Japan, early 20^th century, Meiji period (1868-1912) to Taisho period (1912-1926)

Finely cast as Prince Shotoku dressed in monastic robes, holding a handled censer decorated with two shishi, the hair parted down the middle and tied on both sides with a bow, the reverse with the artist’s seal TAKAMURA KOUN.

HEIGHT 21.2 cm
WEIGHT 1,182 g

Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, few small nicks, light surface scratches, and minor casting irregularities.

A key figure in the development of Japanese sculpture in the later Meiji, Taisho and early Showa eras, Takamura Koun started his career as a specialist carver of Buddhist images and came to international attention in 1877 when he showed a sandalwood figure of the White-robed Kannon at the first Naikoku Kangyo Hakurankai (Domestic Industrial Exhibition). The figure was purchased by a Yokohama merchant for a high price and from that time on Koun increasingly produced work in a style designed to suit changing tastes in Japan and overseas, participating in foreign expositions and receiving many important official commissions. His most famous works are public statues of Kusunoki Masashige, outside the Imperial Palace, and of Saigo Takamori, at the entrance to Ueno Park. In October 1890 he became one of the first two sculptors to be appointed Teishitsu Gigeiin (Artist to the Imperial Household). For a more detailed assessment of Koun's well documented career, see Christine M. E. Guth, 'Takamura Koun and Takamura Kotaro: On Being a Sculptor', in Melinda Takeuchi ed., The Artist as Professional in Japan, Stanford, 2004, pp.152-179.

Prince Shotoku (574–622), nephew of Empress Suiko (554–628), served as her regent and adviser on matters of civil administration. Reputed to be a great Buddhist scholar and influential statesman, he sent an official diplomatic delegation to China and, in 592, compiled the Seventeen Article Constitution, Japan’s earliest code of conduct for the ruling class. Sources indicate that the Imperial family initiated the veneration of Shotoku. At first deified as a Shinto kami, by the medieval period the prince came to be seen as a manifestation of a Buddhist deity. Here, he is portrayed as a paragon of filial piety, holding a handled censer and praying for the recovery of his father, Emperor Yomei, from illness.

Auction comparison:
Compare a related bronze figure of Laozi by the same artist, dated early 20^th century, at Christie’s, Japanese and Korean Art, 18 March 2014, New York, lot 545 (sold for USD 3,250).