Nagami Iwao - centipede
Iwami, circa 1810
Carved from the natural fork in a section of umimatsu, a centipede slithers its way along a cut branch, the body sections and legs contracting towards the head as it reaches the end of the log. The cut ends show the natural concentric circles of the material, which serve to define the annual rings found in wood. To the base at one side the material is gnarled, suggesting a knotted section of wood.
Inscription: 石見国三階山下、永見巌、巌永堂彫刻
Iwami no kuni, Mihashi-yama no shita, Nagami Iwao, Gan’eido- cho-koku
[Carved by Gan’eido-, Nagami Iwao, at the foot of Mount Mihashi-yama, Iwami Province].