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Butterflies

	Object Type	Inro
	Artist	Zeshin
	Period	Meiji
	Materials	Gold Lacquer
	Creation Date	1850
	Dimensions	3.25" x 2.25"

Commentary

Japanese men wore many different kinds of objects suspended from the kimono sash (obi). Most common were the tiered cases called Inro, originally used for carrying their seals, and later for medicines. The entire ensemble consisted of the suspended inro, the toggle which prevents the inro from coming out of the sash (called Netsuke), and the small fastener to hold the cords together (called Ojime). Illustrated here is a complete set. The inro by Zeshin is a gold ground with a decoration of three types of moths in gold and silver hiramakie. Exterior is a red nashiji. It is signed Zeshin on the bottom. The ojime is a small filigree bead. The netuske is a metal disk encased in a shallow round wooden bowl.