Ox 1777 - 1833

This is a small ivory carving of an ox, made by Tomotada in Japan sometime between the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Objects like this were called netsuke and were used as toggles to secure small personal items to a kimono sash. The ox has been carefully and realistically rendered, with close attention paid to its musculature and the texture of its fur. But the artist has also highlighted the animal's docile nature, which relates to the important role that oxen played in Japanese agriculture at the time. The Tokugawa shogunate, which ruled Japan during Tomotada's lifetime, placed great emphasis on farming as the basis of society. The ivory material of this netsuke may also hint at the complex social hierarchies of the time. Though the shogunate promoted ideals of thriftiness, merchants became wealthy and started to commission luxury goods like this one. As historians, we might look to auction records, trade regulations, and sumptuary laws to better understand this work and its place within the Japanese social world.