Lot 12: A boar-tusk netsuke By Jack Coutu (1924-2017), English, carved February/March 1998

A boar-tusk netsuke
By Jack Coutu (1924-2017), English, carved February/March 1998Carved in relief, the tusk forming the leaf, the buff-tip moth laying a cluster of eggs on the leaf, the eggs inlaid in dark horn; signed on a silver tablet JC. 11cm (4 3/8in) long. (2).

Published: Netsuke Kenkyukai Study Journal, vol.15, no.4, p.42, no.7.Sold with Jack Coutu's reference card (no.141), on which he states: 'The print (on the card) is not as clear as it might be. I enjoyed the carving of this one and exploited the tusk shape to form a leaf, instead of simply using the tusk shape as a background. The eggs were the tricky piece both to carve and inlay.'