The World of Netsuke: The Werdelmann Collection at the Museum Kunst Palast Dusseldorf. Netsuke, the Japanese male belt ornaments of outstanding craftsmanship, appeal by their variety of shapes and the sheer endless number of motifs. The subjects illustrate almost all aspects of Japanese culture: Buddhist figures, gods of good luck, animals, plants, fruit and flowers, literary characters, foreigners, children, masks and occupations, down to the prosaic paraphernalia of everyday life. One of the world's most comprehensive netsuke collections is the Werdelmann Collection at the museum kunst palast D��sseldorf with its almost 1100 objects. In this book, 1070 objects are reproduced in brilliant colour photographs and described according to the most recent scholarly research. An extensive list of signatures with commentary rounds off the publication. With bibliography and index.