Exquisite late-Edo Shitadashi Karakuri Daki-ningyo with moveable tongue, original box dated Ganji Gannen (1864), a perfect example of a late Edo “huggable doll” with moving tongue, silk hair, inset glass eyes, jointed wrists and ankles, soft body construction, working voice box, inner kimono vibrantly striped with sacred treasure motifs inside floating roundels, the outer featuring a dramatic water course lined with flowering trees, well modeled features, mamori-bako talismanic bag with clay netsuke of Okame, with additional monkey head mamori bearing owner’s Kyoto address: “Kami 28 ku Muromachi Aneyakoji 3” followed by owner’s name “....ainosuke.” Minor wear to textile, overall excellent condition. 24-1/3” High.
