Katagami stencil depicting roundels of a crane and a hairy tailed tortoise on a background of scrolling waves

Katagami stencil depicting roundels of a crane and a hairy tailed tortoise on a background of scrolling waves. These animals depicted together represent the story of Urashima Taro, a fisherman who released a turtle caught in his net. The turtle, who was Otomine, the daughter of the King of the Sea, rewarded him by taking him to live at court for two years until Urashima became homesick. Before returning to land, Otomine gave him a box and told him never to open it. When he reached land, Urashima found everything changed and in his confusion opened the box and discovered that this box contained his old age. Three hundred years had passed since he was last on land. When the box was opened Urashima turned into a crane. This combination of motifs is, therefore, auspicious for longevity. This stencil is of the chūban size class (determined by the repeat length).