Japanese Wood Karuta Set

This vintage Japanese Hyakunin Isshu set is a beautiful example of mid-century craftsmanship, dating to 1954 (Showa 29). Traditionally used for the classical poetry game karuta, this set features 100 hand-inscribed wooden tiles housed in their original sliding-lid storage box. Each tile displays elegant cursive calligraphy representing the concluding lines of waka poems from Japan’s most famous literary anthology. With its rich wood patina and traditional ink work, this set serves as both a functional game and a sophisticated artifact of Japanese cultural history.