Kinuta
Kinuta is a Japanese name for 'Fulling Block'. This was used to wash new cloth, after it had been woven, in the old days. (it is probably still used in some countries). The fulling block is a large, smooth stone, or a smooth piece of wood. Mine is carved in Manzanita wood, from Mexico. The flying geese and the cresent moon are inlays of ivory. Size is 55mm. It is a copy of an old netsuke, by Mitsuhiro Ohara. On the back, is carved the poem:
At the end of autumn the wild geese fly
Across the Big Dipper while from a house
Under a low moon comes the sound
Of fulling cloth