made in Japan
This ivory netsuke is carved into Kiyohime, a dragon witch, wrapped round a temple bell. 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 netsuke is of Kiyohime. She turned into a dragon witch and wrapped herself around the temple bell where a priest was hiding for whom she had unrequited love. The cord was passed through the hollow bell and out of a himetoshi at the back.
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