This early 20th-century pair of bronze plovers signed 'Daiju', embodies grace and resilience. Standing 28.5 cm and 23.5 cm high, these sculptures by the renowned Japanese metalwork artist by Tsuda Shinobu (1875-1946) capture the plover's symbolic significance in Japanese art: navigating life's hardships. Tsuda, a pivotal figure in modern Japanese metalwork and an influential educator, expertly blended traditional craftsmanship with modernist aesthetics, specializing in elegant bronze forms. His work, widely exhibited and internationally recognized, notably in Paris, profoundly shaped Japanese metal art and can be found in major museum collections.