Search Collections

Ceramic Tanuki Imitating a Monk

The tanuki, also known as the Japanese raccoon dog, is very much a real animal that resembles a furry fox-like canid with a masked visage similar to that of a raccoon. Within Japan the tanuki is believed to be a shape-shifting, hedonistic and jovial trickster. This piece is created in reference to the Japanese fairy-tale where a Japanese raccoon dog disguises himself as a monk. The seal on the bottom reads: Tooru (or Kyo)