- 89
Dermatological scroll
Estimate
20,000 - 30,000 GBP
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Description
- 南蛮明発背後癰疽文要法 [Nan man ming fa bei hou yong ju wen yao fa] [Essential principles about abscesses and tumours on the back as explained by the southern barbarians]. [Japan, late eighteenth century]
- ink and pigments on paper
horizontal scroll (1190 x 25cm.), 68 full-page coloured illustrations by an unidentified artist, manuscript text in Chinese characters with Japanese "katakana" notes, patterned silk on verso at end of scroll, lettered on a gilt strip on the end of the roll, with later central wooden pole, modern long tie and in modern wooden box
Literature
Gabor Lukacs and Alain Briot, Chinese dermatology on a Japanese handscroll (Amsterdam, 2012), containing reproductions of all the illustrations
Condition
Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."
Catalogue Note
AN EXCEPTIONAL AND BEAUTIFULLY ILLUSTRATED MEDICAL SCROLL. The title indicates, erroneously, that the text was based on the work of Portuguese physicians practising in Japan from the 1580s to the 1620s; in fact it is based on two earlier Chinese treatises, Shen Douyuan's Disclosure of the secrets of external diseases (1604) and Chen Shigong's Genuine surgery (1617), both from the late Ming dynasty.
The Japanese illustrations are taken from the woodcuts in the printed Chinese editions of the source texts, but with greater detail and anatomical accuracy. The images depicting the "southern barbarians" illustrate red-haired Dutch people from Dejima Island in the port of Nagasaki, the only Europeans allowed to stay at that time in Japan.