A BRONZE WATER DROPPER IN THE SHAPE OF GAMA SENNINS TOAD

A BRONZE WATER DROPPER IN THE SHAPE OF GAMA SENNIN'S TOAD
Japan, 19th century
The animal cast with three legs, with its warty skin showing raised pimples, with bulging eyes and an open mouth. With a large circular opening at the top and a tiny hole inside the toad's mouth.
LENGTH 14.5 cm
WEIGHT 444 g
Condition:
Good condition with minor wear, casting flaws, and tiny surface scratches.
Provenance:
Family collection of either Felix Tikotin (1893-1986) or his son-in-law Louis (Loek) Borensztajn (1935-2021), Netherlands. Felix Tikotin (1893-1986) was an architect, art collector, dealer, and founder of the first Museum of Japanese Art in the Middle East. He became one of the world's leading collectors of Japanese art, starting at the age of 18, and continued to collect and work as an art dealer in Berlin in the 1920s. In the 1930s Felix Tikotin fled from the Nazis and hid his collection in the Netherlands. After the war, he decided that his collection should be taken to Israel, where in 1959 and with the help of Abba Hushi, who was the mayor of Haifa, The Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art was established. The Museum's collection comprises more than 8,000 items of art and crafts.