5th Dec, 2025 10:00
Fine Japanese Art
189
A HIGHLY IMPORTANT AND MONUMENTAL (165 CM) BRONZE FIGURE OF DAIKOKU, LATE EDO TO MEIJI
€24,000
€50,000
A buyer’s premium of 30.00% (including VAT) applies to the hammer price of this lot if your bid is successful.
Japan, 19th century, late Edo period (1615-1868) to Meiji period (1615-1868)
Superbly and massively cast, the God of Wealth seated atop a large rice bale, the right hand raised above his head and clasped around his separately cast wish-granting mallet, the left hand balancing a hoju (sacred wish-granting jewel) in his open palm. The deity dressed in a voluminous robe, tied with a belt below his engorged pot-belly, wearing thick boots and a cap, the face with an expression of triumph flanked by ears with pendulous lobes.
HEIGHT 165 cm
WEIGHT 120 kg
Provenance: The private collection of Friedrich Carl Duisberg, acquired prior to 1930 from an antique store in Kobe. Exhibited in the recreational Japanese Garden of Bayer AG in Leverkusen. In his travel diary, Dr. Carl Duisberg recounts a visit to Kobe, where he discovered a special bronze figure in a small shop owned by a Japanese man named Harashin, which was filled with exquisite works of art. After spotting the magnificent figure of Daikoku in the corner of the shop, Duisberg asked the owner in English who this figure represented, he received an answer in German, accompanied by a mischievous smile: “The god of industry.” As chairman of the Reich Association of German Industry, Duisberg felt obliged, with a wink, to purchase this bronze for his garden on the Rhine (copies of the diary pages in which Duisberg recounts the Japan travels confirming the above are included). Friedrich Carl Duisberg (1861-1935) was one of the most important German industrialists of his time. The first General Director of the Bayer paint factory from 1912 to 1925 and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of IG Farben, which he co-founded, from 1926 until his death in 1935, Duisberg is known above all as a pioneering industrialist. He played a decisive role in shaping both the scientific and economic landscape of early 20th-century Germany. Yet beyond his achievements in industry, he cultivated a deep personal commitment to the arts and to the harmonization of science, culture, and nature. This philosophy found its most intimate expression in the garden he created after moving from Elberfeld to Leverkusen in 1912 – a move closely tied to Bayer’s expansion and the development of the company’s headquarters. Situated within a pre-existing landscape, Duisberg transformed the grounds surrounding his new residence into a visionary fusion of art and nature. A conventional redesign of the pond into a lawn was soon abandoned in favor of a more ambitious and poetic concept: a garden inspired by Japanese aesthetics. Yet his aim was not imitation. Instead, Duisberg developed a personal interpretation of the Japanese garden, one that reflected his sensitivity to the changing seasons, the poetics of natural form, and the contemplative dialog between object and environment. Every piece within this garden was handpicked by Duisberg. Each was chosen not only for its artistic merit but for its ability to converse with its surroundings: the trees, the water, the shifting light of spring and autumn. The result was a living collection, in which artworks did not dominate the landscape but became part of its breath and rhythm.
Condition: Good condition with wear and casting irregularities. Age cracks, small losses, scattered dings, and signs of weathering and erosion. The underside of the left arm with losses and weathering. Small areas with fills and associated touchups. The bronze with a rich, naturally grown patina with vibrant malachite encrustations.
Daikoku, or Daikokuten is originally known as Mahakala, one of the Tantric guardian deities known as the primary Wisdom Protector of Tibetan Buddhism, as well as a meditational deity. While he has many different forms, he is typically depicted with a wrathful appearance. In Japan this deity is considered as protector of farming and commerce and one of the Seven Gods of Good Fortune. In a much less fearsome form, this deity was popular during the Edo period.
Auction comparison:
Compare related monumental bronze Shinto deities, sealed Dai Nihon Suzuki Masayoshi tsukuru, Meiji period, dated 19th century, 208 cm high, at Christie’s, Asobi: Ingenious Creativity, Japanese Works of Art from Antiquity to Contemporary, 15 October 2014, London, lot 98 (sold for GBP 146,500 or approx. EUR 268,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing).
Japan, 19th century, late Edo period (1615-1868) to Meiji period (1615-1868)
Superbly and massively cast, the God of Wealth seated atop a large rice bale, the right hand raised above his head and clasped around his separately cast wish-granting mallet, the left hand balancing a hoju (sacred wish-granting jewel) in his open palm. The deity dressed in a voluminous robe, tied with a belt below his engorged pot-belly, wearing thick boots and a cap, the face with an expression of triumph flanked by ears with pendulous lobes.
HEIGHT 165 cm
WEIGHT 120 kg
Provenance: The private collection of Friedrich Carl Duisberg, acquired prior to 1930 from an antique store in Kobe. Exhibited in the recreational Japanese Garden of Bayer AG in Leverkusen. In his travel diary, Dr. Carl Duisberg recounts a visit to Kobe, where he discovered a special bronze figure in a small shop owned by a Japanese man named Harashin, which was filled with exquisite works of art. After spotting the magnificent figure of Daikoku in the corner of the shop, Duisberg asked the owner in English who this figure represented, he received an answer in German, accompanied by a mischievous smile: “The god of industry.” As chairman of the Reich Association of German Industry, Duisberg felt obliged, with a wink, to purchase this bronze for his garden on the Rhine (copies of the diary pages in which Duisberg recounts the Japan travels confirming the above are included). Friedrich Carl Duisberg (1861-1935) was one of the most important German industrialists of his time. The first General Director of the Bayer paint factory from 1912 to 1925 and Chairman of the Supervisory Board of IG Farben, which he co-founded, from 1926 until his death in 1935, Duisberg is known above all as a pioneering industrialist. He played a decisive role in shaping both the scientific and economic landscape of early 20th-century Germany. Yet beyond his achievements in industry, he cultivated a deep personal commitment to the arts and to the harmonization of science, culture, and nature. This philosophy found its most intimate expression in the garden he created after moving from Elberfeld to Leverkusen in 1912 – a move closely tied to Bayer’s expansion and the development of the company’s headquarters. Situated within a pre-existing landscape, Duisberg transformed the grounds surrounding his new residence into a visionary fusion of art and nature. A conventional redesign of the pond into a lawn was soon abandoned in favor of a more ambitious and poetic concept: a garden inspired by Japanese aesthetics. Yet his aim was not imitation. Instead, Duisberg developed a personal interpretation of the Japanese garden, one that reflected his sensitivity to the changing seasons, the poetics of natural form, and the contemplative dialog between object and environment. Every piece within this garden was handpicked by Duisberg. Each was chosen not only for its artistic merit but for its ability to converse with its surroundings: the trees, the water, the shifting light of spring and autumn. The result was a living collection, in which artworks did not dominate the landscape but became part of its breath and rhythm.
Condition: Good condition with wear and casting irregularities. Age cracks, small losses, scattered dings, and signs of weathering and erosion. The underside of the left arm with losses and weathering. Small areas with fills and associated touchups. The bronze with a rich, naturally grown patina with vibrant malachite encrustations.
Daikoku, or Daikokuten is originally known as Mahakala, one of the Tantric guardian deities known as the primary Wisdom Protector of Tibetan Buddhism, as well as a meditational deity. While he has many different forms, he is typically depicted with a wrathful appearance. In Japan this deity is considered as protector of farming and commerce and one of the Seven Gods of Good Fortune. In a much less fearsome form, this deity was popular during the Edo period.
Auction comparison:
Compare related monumental bronze Shinto deities, sealed Dai Nihon Suzuki Masayoshi tsukuru, Meiji period, dated 19th century, 208 cm high, at Christie’s, Asobi: Ingenious Creativity, Japanese Works of Art from Antiquity to Contemporary, 15 October 2014, London, lot 98 (sold for GBP 146,500 or approx. EUR 268,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing).
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Auction: Fine Japanese Art, 5th Dec, 2025
We're delighted to present Fine Japanese Art — a live auction featuring 600 exceptional lots that span every era of Japan’s rich artistic heritage.
The first 360 lots are featured in our printed catalog, beginning with Bronzes & Meiji metalwork, including a superb selection of silver works and notable pieces by celebrated masters such as Kitagawa Hokusen I and Jomi Eisuke II. These are followed by an outstanding group of samurai artworks, showcasing works by the Myochin family, intricate jizai okimono, exquisite tsuba from the Kotler Collection, and a distinguished array of armors, helmets, and swords. Learn more.
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