An ivory figure of an itinerant puppeteer by Nobutaka, Meiji period

standing in a short patterned tunic and equipped with a box slung around his neck, serving as a stage, atop of which sits a dancing male puppet, the front panel of the box engraved with the characters kairashi (puppeteer), his right hand holding a parasol and manipulating a female  puppet with the other, signed Nobutaka saku