This is a traditional craft, cherry bark work "Sakurakawa Budo" (cherry bark with inlaid shell grapes) tray, from Kakunodate, Senboku City, Akita Prefecture. There are fine scratches and stains throughout. Excerpt from the description below: "Sakurakawa Budo" Grapes are a sacred fruit symbolizing abundance and fertility, and have been used as decorative patterns on everyday items since ancient times. Kakunodate, Senboku City, Akita Prefecture (formerly Kakunodate Town), known for its cherry bark work (kabazaiku), is a castle town known as the "Little Kyoto" of Michinoku, ruled by the Satake-Kitake family. Cherry bark work was born in the Tenmei era (1780s) as a side job for lower-ranking samurai and has been passed down as a traditional craft to this day. "Sakurakawa Budo" utilizes the techniques of cherry bark work and the bark of wild cherry trees. The bark is naturally dried for over a year, then shaved thin and further polished. The shape of the grapes is created, and each piece is applied using the cherry bark work technique, with lines added to create a three-dimensional effect, and finally, mother-of-pearl is applied to finish. - Materials: Wood, mother-of-pearl - Design: Grape decoration - Size: - First photo: Outer dimensions approx. 53.5cm x 31cm, inner dimensions approx. 49cm x 29cm - Second photo: Outer dimensions approx. 52cm x 19.5cm, inner dimensions approx. 47.5cm x 17cm Akita, Kakunodate, cherry bark work, kabazaiku, tray, traditional craft