47 RONINS

In Japan, the 47 ronin are revered for their greatest loyalty to duty and honor, an impressive story! While creating a sketch for a netsuke, I referred to Utagawa Kuniyoshi’s engravings from the Orlov-Kretschmer collection “47 Loyal Ronin” from the exhibition at the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts. I was impressed by the elevated images of the samurai; their names remained in history and people’s memory, while the names of the samurai who defended Kira faded into oblivion. This served as the basis for the sketch. I captured only the images of the 47 ronin, who remain in our memory as invincible warriors, preserving valor and honor. Manju netsuke 47 RONINS was carved from mammoth tusk, Japanese Urushi lacquers, 6.3 cm across, August 2024