
Netsuke in the form of an ivory study of a tortoise and a rat. The tortoise is standing up on its legs and looking forwards. It has a long tail which curls around its right hind foot. A rat is sitting on the tortoise's back. The eyes of the tortoise are outlined in black, with dots marking the pupils. The fur of the rat is indicated with incised lines; the tortoiseshell pattern of the tortoise is also indicated by incisions as are the folds in its belly.