A large leaping koi carp in Arita porcelain, resting on a pierced rock or riverbank. The fish is rendered in a particularly naturalistic manner, rising vertically with its mouth open, and predominantly decorated in shades of blue. The quadrangular base, modelled as a pierced rock, is enamelled in black, green and blue.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION :

This carp originates from Japan and was produced at the Arita kilns circa 1680–1700. It belongs to a particularly expressive group of late seventeenth-century wares, during which Arita kilns experimented with new sculptural forms. Comparable productions include numerous figural pieces, as well as alternative representations of carp, sometimes combined with human figures.

The treatment of the scales, and their slight irregularity, attests to a still highly artisanal mode of production.

BIBLIOGRAPHY :

For a pair of comparable carp, see:

– Okimono: Japanese Porcelain Figures from the Edo Period, Luísa Vinhais and Jorge Welsh, 2022, p. 152, fig. 24.

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