This beautiful traditional Yajirō Kokeshi was made by Niiyama Sanai (新山左内, 1902–1980), an important craftsman from Yajirō, Miyagi Prefecture, and a member of one of the region’s long-established woodworking families.
Sanai was born in Yajirō on June 25, 1902, the fifth son of the kokeshi craftsman Niiyama Hisajirō. He began learning woodturning at around the age of thirteen under his father and his elder brother Hisaji, initially producing toys and other small wooden objects alongside kokeshi.
His career was unusually varied. As a young man he worked in several woodworking workshops in Tokyo and Fukushima, turning household objects, toys, furniture components, sake-bottle bases, and other utilitarian pieces. These years gave him extensive experience at the lathe beyond kokeshi production alone.
From the late 1920s onward, he worked independently in Fukushima Prefecture and produced kokeshi alongside other wooden goods. He later lived and worked in Hitachi and Yamatsuri, continuing to supply kokeshi to shops and hot-spring destinations.
In 1949 he returned permanently to Yajirō, and from 1951 worked independently from his home workshop. His eldest son Sakyō also learned woodturning and kokeshi making, continuing the family craft tradition. Sanai later operated a small kokeshi and food shop while continuing to turn dolls in the workshop beside it. He remained active in the local craft community and even served as an instructor for a Shiroishi City wooden-toy workshop in 1964.
Size: 5 x 5 x 18cm
