Many Of Us,

will have seen a print, 

 of Katsushika Hokusai's The Great Wave off Kanagawa, in fact we made a post about it in November 2016, 

 and what should I find this morning? 

 a book by Japanese artist Mori Yuzan, about whom not a lot is known, apart from that he hailed from Kyoto, worked in the Nihonga style, and died in 1917, (which would make this a posthumous collection),

it is basically a go-to guide for Japanese craftsmen looking to adorn their wares with wave and ripple patterns,

  the designs would have found their way onto swords (both blades and handles), 

and associated paraphernalia (known as “sword furniture”),  

as well as lacquerware, Netsuke, religious objects, and a host of other items,

the book was then brought out as a multi-volume work at the beginning of the 20th century, what a fascinating way to look at how craftsmen could gather information to decorate their wares.