Katsura Eiju 桂永壽
Menuki (c. 1770)
Certification: NBTHK Hozon
Unsigned menuki with NBTHK
attribution to Katsura Eiju.
Katsura Eiju, founder of the very well
regarded Katsura School, was a student of the second Yokoya Sōyo and also
Yokoya Terukiyo. He worked in Kurume, Chickugo, and served the
Arima Daimyō of that
province. He was proficient in the style of Yokoya Sōmin, and his skill is said
to come very close to that of Sōmin himself. Eiju used the names: Sajūrō 左十郎,
Shikō 紫江, Shōyōken 逍遙軒,
Shōyōshi 逍遙子, and Unsai 雲斎 in his signatures. His
adopted son, Egawa Toshimasa (also read Sorin), became master of the famous
Egawa School.
This set of menuki is done in a base metal
of shakudō with gold highlights. The surface of the fish seems to have a very
thin gold wash, as though gold dust was blown over them, giving them an unusual
iridescence and appearance. This subject was a favorite of Katsura Eiju, with many
extant examples.
Photos by Jack Edick
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