USABURO Kokeshi \

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USABURO Kokeshi \"Daruma Daishi\", Precious Zelkova Wood, Japan - 5\" For Sale

$USABURO Kokeshi \$
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USABURO Kokeshi \"Daruma Daishi\", Precious Zelkova Wood, Japan - 5\":
$29.00

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Origin: Gunma Prefecture, Japan.

Made from the precious Zelkova wood, which is revered in Japan for its symbolic spiritual meaning and as a beautiful material for woodcraft.

In very good condition.

- Height: approximately 5\"

- Diameter: approximately 2.7\"

- Weight: approximately 0.5 lbs

Daruma is a traditional good luck charm in Japan. It is rooted in 5th to 6th century Japanese folklore and is a symbol of perseverance in the face of adversity. Daruma figurines can be recognized by their round shape, bright colors (originally red), and striking, open-eyed face. Daruma is used to make wishes about a goal one would like to achieve.

Darumas have a deep and powerful legend behind them.They’re modeled after the monk Bodhidharma who was credited with a long list of accomplishments like founding Zen Buddhism, popularizing Shaolin kungfu and inventing green tea.Legend has it that Bodhidharma meditated in a cave for 9 years without so much as blinking. His persistence was so strong that when his arms, legs and eyelids fell off, he continued without pause. This story, along with Bodhidharma’s dedication, are the basis for the daruma’s round shape. Daruma were originally weighted at the bottom so they stand up no matter how many times they’re knocked over.

Usaburo Kokeshi

Usaburo is a highly regarded artist family from Japan\'s Gunma Prefecture, the top producing area of kokeshi in Japan. Kokeshi made in Gunma is calledsosaku(or“creative” or \"modern\") kokeshi, and is differentiated fromdento(“traditional”) kokeshi produced in the Tohoku district in northeastern Honshu. Creative kokeshi is characterized by freedom from the conventional shapes of traditional kokeshi with a round head. Sosaku kokeshi often depict little girls with bobbed hair.

Usaburo Kokeshi has grown to become an important kokeshi art atelier in Japan famous for its artistic, stylish designs and the impeccable quality of its kokeshi.

Usaburo Okamoto, the founder of Usaburo Kokeshi, was born in Shinto Village, Gunma Prefecture in 1917. After making handicrafts with artificial stones and metals, he started making kokeshi dolls in 1950. Soon, in addition to painting with a brush, which was the mainstream at the time, he created three-dimensional expression techniques, such as engraving and pottery painting, creating the prototype of Usaburo Kokeshi that continues to this day.The basic designs of kokeshi developed by Master Usaburo feature this bobbed hair and a plump round body. The simple lines of his kokeshi had the somewhat archaic beauty of the Orient.

He devoted himself to research on how to prevent wood from cracking, and succeeded in incorporating wood that was considered unsuitable for processing into kokeshi dolls. Usaburo\'s representative work \"Kan-Tsubaki\", which features his favorite camellia flowers on Zelkova with beautiful wood grain, was given the honor of being purchased by Emperor Showa. Usaburo combines machine techniques, artistic handwork and symbolism to produce captivating, inspiring kokeshi characters.

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