made in Japan
This netsuke is made of ivory carved into a ball of comic masks. A netsuke is used to fasten an inro, a small lacquered container, which hung from the sash of a man's kimono. They became miniature art forms in their own right.
This detail of a netsuke formed of a ball of comic masks shows a mask of a samurai or warrior. The himetoshi, holes for passing the cord through are both in the base.
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