A RARE AND UNUSUAL NETSUKE OF AN ISLANDER DRINKING FROM A BOTTLE Unsigned Japan, 18th century, Edo period (1615-1868) Boldly carved as a somewhat grotesque image of a man, most likely some type of exotic islander, seated with a large bottle raised to his lips, his long and broad nose flanked by small eyes inlaid in dark horn and large, round ears. The netsuke is of an appealing, compact shape, and carved in an almost primitive, folksy manner. Natural himotoshi between the man and the bottle. HEIGHT 5.4 cm Condition: Good condition, appealingly worn, with few small nicks and occasional light scratches. Fine, dark patina. Provenance: Ex-collection Richard R. Silverman, purchased 2001 from Konishi, Los Angeles. Richard R. Silverman (1932-2019) was a renowned Asian art collector with one of the largest private collections of netsuke outside of Japan. He lived in Tokyo between 1964 and 1979 and began to collect netsuke there in 1968. Since the 1970s, he wrote and lectured about netsuke and was an Asian art consultant for Christie's, Sotheby's, and Bonhams. His gift of 226 ceramic netsuke to the Toledo Museum of Art constitutes perhaps the largest public collection of these miniature clay sculptures in the world. After moving to California, Silverman became a member of the Far Eastern Art Council at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art in 1984. In 1993, he joined LACMA's Executive Board. He served on the board of directors for the International Society of Appraisers from 1986 to 1994 and served nine years as chair for the City of West Hollywood Fine Arts Commission. Richard Silverman was posthumously awarded the Order of the Rising Sun for his decades-long promotion of Japanese culture.