A stylized early 19th-century Shishi lion, lively crouching forward with a large ball under grip, its formidable head turned up with a snarl, inside the large jaw a loose ball rolling behind its sharp teeth, twirling mane carved in deep parallel lines, balancing a smooth plain with dense textures, several furballs piled into swirling masses, large bushy tail raised up and thrown across her back. In form and spirit, this is one unconventional Shishi netsuke designed by a known master carver, Masatami, an apprentice of Masakazu, who lived in Nagoya and died at the age of 75 in 1928.