Seta River Suiseki - Puddle Stone - 6½ in (17cm)

Tamara-ishi (Puddle Stone) - stones with a recess are called puddle stones, it's very common to display these filled with water, they're also commonly used for Summer displays. 

Seta River stone is one of the big three Suiseki stones - they are dark and hard, usually smooth from being bashed around in the river for millenia.

This particular stone is kind of two tone, some black elements and jagure at the back, but also some lighter rock, making it close to Seta Tiger stone. The recess has a kind of clawed quality at the back, which could also suggest a rocky coast line. It will hold a small amount of liquid, when, with a bit of imagination, it suggests a mountain lake.

The stone is unprocessed from top to bottom, making it a high quality stone.

The daiza has been handmade from wood for this stone and pairs well with it.

Size: 165 x 113 x 70mm (6½ x 4½ x 2¾)

Condition: Stone - excellent, daiza excellent.

Source: Seta River, Japan

The Setagawa pours out of ancient Lake Biwa (4 million years old) north east of Kyoto, where it's name changes to Ujigawa, then down to Osaka where it's name changes to Yodogawa, where it then empties into Osaka Bay. In those early stages, it breaks through hard rock, producing Setagawa-ishi (River Seta stones).