Japanese Meiji or Taisho (early 20thC) bronze of Ninomiya Sontoku, the famous agricultural leader (see below) depicted as a boy, standing on a naturalistically cast base, reading an incised book, ‘The Great Learning’ (Daigaku), while carrying bundles of brushwood cast in openwork secured by robes on his back, his face neatly detailed. The back is incised with the signature, Hideyama. The bronze measures 31cm (12.2in) high, x 16cm (6.3) x 11cm (4.3in), weight 3.6kg (ca 8lb).
Excellent original condition and nice patina.
Ninomiya Sontoku (1787-1856), born Ninomiya Kinjiro, was a prominent 19th-century Japanese agricultural leader, philosopher, moralist and economist. He lost his parents when he was a boy, but through hard work and diligence, he rebuilt his fallen family at the age of 20. Later, he rebuilt approximately 600 villages and became a shogunate retainer. His ideas and actions were inherited as the Hotokusha Movement.
It is common to see statues of Ninomiya in or in fr
...ont of Japanese schools, especially elementary schools, which typically depict him as a boy reading a book while walking and carrying firewood on his back. The statues illustrate popular stories that said Ninomiya was reading and studying every moment he could.
Internal Reference: AD519/23
Antique ID Number (AIDN): SA1021620
Dateline of this antique is 1910
Height is 31cm (12.2inches)Width is 16cm (6.3inches)Depth is 11cm (4.3inches)
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