The inro is a container made up of tiers. Japanese men used them because the traditional Japanese garment, the kimono, had no pockets. From the late 1500s onwards, Japanese men wore the inro suspended from their sash by a silk cord and a netsuke (toggle). They originally used it to hold their seal and ink or a supply of medicines. However, it rapidly became a costly fashion accessory of little or no practical use. Most inro are rectangular with gently curving sides. However this example is circular, with a completely flat front and back.
Lacquer was most commonly used in the manufacture of inro since it was highly suitable for storing medicines. Lacquer is the sap from the tree Rhus verniciflua that grows mainly in East Asia. After processing, it is applied in many thin layers to a base material. The craft of lacquering, as well as making inro bodies, is highly complex, time-consuming and expensive.
This inro is decorated with a sinuous, flaming dragon, curled to fill the contours of the body, in gold and red hiramakie (literally low-sprinkled picture) lacquer and takamakie (literally high-sprinkled picture) lacquer. By contrast the side of the inro is decorated with a continuous band of peonies in carved red lacquer.