Japanese Kai-Awase Shell Game Set 5 Painted w/ Shochikubai Gold Clamshell

This is a set of five Kai-awase matching shells for the game of Kai awase. Kai-awase (貝合わせ), the game of ‘matching shells’, is included among a number of aristocratic pastimes belonging to the category monoawase (物合わせ), a ‘competitive comparison among things’ that was popular in the eleventh and twelfth–century Japanese court. The subjects to be compared and judged ranged from man-made creations like poems, paintings and musical instruments, to natural phenomena like flowers, roots of the calamus plant, birds, insects and miniature tray gardens. The examples of clamshells and incens differ from the general format of mono-awase pastimes, but share the basic element of competition.

Most measure approximately 2 3/4 by 2" (7 cm) by a standard 7/8" (5 cm) diameter there is some variation on size and shape (as can be seen in the pics). Despite their age they remain in good condition.