Ojime
An ojime is a bead, usually small enough to sit on a fingertip, threaded on the two cords that run from an inro to its netsuke. Slid down, it holds the inro's stack of boxes closed while the case hangs from the sash; slid up towards the netsuke, it lets the boxes open. The name means cord fastener, and the bead dates from the Edo period, from 1603 to 1868.
Definition
An ojime is one of three parts that work together. The inro, a case of nested boxes, hangs below the sash. The netsuke, a carved toggle, sits above it and stops the cords slipping through. The ojime rides between them on the cords and does the closing. Remove it and the inro falls open; make it too loose and the boxes drift apart as the wearer walks. A good ojime therefore grips the cords firmly but slides under the fingers.
Because it is so small, the ojime became a place for concentrated craft. Nineteenth-century examples in mixed metals are well known, and a Meiji bead of gilt bronze inlaid with pearl is held in the Honolulu Museum of Art. In our handling, ojime also come in lacquer, ceramic, wood and ivory, carved with the same subjects as netsuke: gods, animals, flowers and masks.
Origin
The ojime belongs to the Edo period's system of sagemono, the hanging containers worn on a kimono, which had no pockets. Ojime, netsuke and inro were worn together, hanging from the belt of a traditional kimono, and in our handling they were often chosen to match. When Western dress spread in the Meiji period, from 1868, the ensemble left everyday life, and ojime, like netsuke and inro, passed into collections.
In our handling, ojime are still carved today, often in mammoth tusk, and are collected singly as well as with their inro.
Key facts
| Meaning | Cord fastener |
|---|---|
| Function | Slides on inro cords to close or open the boxes |
| Period | From the Edo period, 1603 to 1868; still made |
| Materials | Metal, lacquer, ceramic, glass, stone, wood, ivory, mammoth tusk |
| Worn with | Inro and netsuke |
How to identify it
- The channel. An ojime has a single hole through it, wide enough for two cords. In our handling, the edges of the channel on an old bead are polished smooth by cord wear.
- The scale. Ojime are usually around a centimetre or two across; a much larger carved bead is more likely a netsuke or an okimono.
- The match. When an inro, ojime and netsuke arrive together, read whether they were made as a set or assembled later. A shared subject and finish suggest the first; different hands and materials suggest the second, which is common and honest.
- Wear on the bead. In our handling, an old metal ojime shows softened detail on its high points where fingers pushed it along the cords; a carved bead shows a gentle polish around its widest part.
- Modern work. A crisp, unworn bead in mammoth tusk is a modern carving, as our guide to mammoth tusk netsuke explains.
Where it appears in the collection
Ojime sit with netsuke and inro on the netsuke, sagemono and inro shelf. We hold an ojime carved as the head of Kannon with a red urna and an ojime carved as a coiled snake with stained scales. The full system is set out in our guide to netsuke, inro and maki-e.
Related entries
- Inro: the case the ojime closes.
- Netsuke: the toggle at the other end of the cords.
- Maki-e: the lacquer that decorates many sets.
Sources
- Ojime, encyclopaedia entry. wikipedia.org
- Inro, encyclopaedia entry, for the function of the bead. wikipedia.org
- Netsuke, encyclopaedia entry, for the sagemono system and Meiji decline. wikipedia.org
Last reviewed 15 November 2026. The Japonista Curation and Concierge Team, Tokyo, Japan.