A beautiful carved and painted Japanese ivory netsuke of a man holding a water jug in the crook of his right elbow and holding a rope around the neck of a pelican (with a fish in its mouth) in his left hand.  dates circa 1900.

A netsuke is a small sculptural object (carved button-like ornament) worn for hundreds of years in Japan as a functional and aesthetic piece and used to suspend articles from the sash of a kimono.

The figurine is 2 inches tall x 1 1/2 inches wide at the base and is in excellent condition.