Netsuke in wood of a demon crouching beneath an old palm hat, signed Masakazu, c.1800, Japan

Japanese men used netsuke to suspend various pouches and containers from their sashes by a silk cord. The netsuke is a toggle. In this example, there are a pair of holes ( himotoshi ) on the bottom of the sandal.

Although netsuke were made in a variety of forms, the most widely appreciated is the katabori (shape carving). In Japanese folklore oni are devious creatures with an ugly appearance capable of causing mischief and misfortune. Throwing peas at an oni was thought to make the malevolent creature blind, as depicted in this netsuke of an oni desperately hiding under a hat. On the 4 th February the exorcism ritual of Setsubun is held where peas are thrown inside and outside the house to expel evil demons that may be lurking inside.

From the 18 th century onwards, many more makers signed their netsukes.