Well, in the manga, it's much clearer that he'd actually never used the statue before that point, because it didn't have Konan's reaction as though she recognized it like the anime did.
It's pretty obvious though that he'd never used the statue before then since:
Before - He isn't emaciated and impaled with a dozen metal rods
After - Is emaciated and impaled with a dozen metal rods
Which is the condition he's in to this day. If he'd ever used the statue before, he'd have been in that condition already.