[A PAIR OF METAL STATUES OF THE CELEBRATED AGRICULTURAL & POLITICAL LEADER NINOM

[Japan n.d.ca 1910-15]. Two metal statues of Ninomiya, each about 11.5 the other 12 cm. high, very good, old gilt paint NOT flashy, subdued colors, both on a pedestal, excellent examples. OBSCURE & FASCINATING ITEMS OBSCURE . *** **** *** . . A MODEL, HUMBLE JAPANESE WHO ACHIEVED SUCCESS . . . IN FEUDAL JAPAN . * Ninomiya Kinjiro was his actual name, but was later know as Ninomiya Sontoku [1787-1856]: . He was born to a poor peasant family. He became a prominent 19th-century Japanese agricultural leader, philosopher, moralist and economist. He was an excellent example of a self-educated useful and productive person. . His father died when he was 14 and his mother died two years later. He was then placed in his uncle's household. . While working in his uncle's land, Sontoku studied very hard. He later obtained abandoned land on his own and transformed it into agricultural land, eventually restoring his household on his own at the age of 20. He achieved considerable wealth as a landlord while in his 20s. He was then recruited to run a small feudal district which was facing considerable financial difficulty. He achieved this by reviving local economy, particularly through agricultural development. The Daimyo, hearing of his achievement, eventually recruited Sontoku to run Odawara Domain then Sagami Province. . *** A PAIR OF STATUES: . This pair of very similar statues show a young Ninomiya, with two bundles of firewood on his back, walking while reading a book. This of shows his determination to educate himself. . He wears the typical late Edo period short Kimono, and in one he wears Wara [rice stalks] snow boots, the other shows him wearing Zoori or rice-hull straw sandals for the warm season. His coiffeur is the typical Edo [1603-1868] period Chonmage [top-knot]. . These childhood statues of Ninomiya were put in nearly every primary school throughout after his death for two reasons. First, to inspire children to work hard and study. The second, these statues were always exactly one meter tall, with the purpose to teach primary school children what one meter in height looked like. Ours are the 'desk' version, about 11.5 & 12 cm. tall. . *** Color photos are posted to our website. . *** CONDITION: These are casted from some kind of base metal, with a bronze finish or paint on them. They are in excellent, gently used condition, with typical minor scuffs and signs of wear. The pedestal has no inscription whatsoever. All in all an above average example, inspiring and ready for display. . *** REFERENCE: . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ninomiya_Sontoku .