Japanese Boxwood Netsuke of One Large and Four Smaller Vegetable Gourds
A Fine Japanese Boxwood Netsuke of One Large and Four Smaller Vegetable Gourds attached to a long stalk with three leaves the gap between the Gourd and the Stalk forming the Himotoshi
Late 18th – Early 19th Century
Size: 5.5cm long - 2¼ ins long
Late 18th – Early 19th Century
Size: 5.5cm long - 2¼ ins long
The calabash, white flowered or bottle gourd ‘Lagenaria siceraria’ is known by many names across the world and is a vine grown for its edible fruit. These are harvested when young and used as a vegetable or left to mature and used as a utensil, bottle or even a pipe. In Japan, it is most commonly sold in the form of fried marinated strips known as ‘Kanpyo’ and is used as an ingredient in rolled sushi. Gourds were one of the first cultivated plants in the world. It was grown in the Americas long before the arrival of Christopher Columbus. However, it should not be confused with the hard, hollow fruits of the the unrelated calabash tree.
Japanese Boxwood Netsuke of One Large and Four Smaller Vegetable Gourds
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