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I acquired this intriguing object for 99 cents at a junk shop. It is of cast iron and ca, 3" diameter. A Chinese friend said that the writing is Japanese and reads Izumo Taisho. Google immediately turned up a lot of information on that Shinto shrine, and with a little more work I found the linked image of the same cluster of buildings.

My question: what might have been the place of such an object? Bell-pull, cookie stamp, souvenir? I'm assuming that it's not valuable, and plan to rust-proof it and hang amid some metal tubes to make a wind chime. But it would be nice to know its original purpose, approximate age, and how it might have gotten to the New World.

Thanks!





Link :Izumo Taisha Grand Shrine buildings

Temple bells?? you would need 2 of those...
Ernest

I originally had the same idea. It's about the same size as half of a pair of tingsha (Tibetan hand chimes), though the hole is pretty small for a strong cord and the narrow side would make striking awkward. But when I suspended it and struck the side with various clappers, it didn't ring at all well: squeaky pitch and nil resonance.

Based on the chinese mirror form, used from the bronze age and subsequent eras, this appears to be a non functional item (the "reflective" face has been deliberately defaced with cast characters) and likely used just as a decoration , as mirrors did have a spiritual use.

A souvenir but also a very useful paper weight.

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