Unknown Maker, Japanese

Inscription Text/Poem: いをの骨
鵜のみにしてや
たてつらん
象牙にのとを
撫しこの花
Translation: A basic translation of the poem can read:
When one swallows a bone
without knowing it,
rub it to dislodge it
as if it were a whalebone ring

The poem is a play on the words nadeshiko (pinks), and the verb "nade" (to rub). Cormorants were fitted with a whale-bone ring at the base of the neck which was pulled tight in order to keep the bird from swallowing the ayu fish they caught. The poem likens the swallowing of a bone that requires one to "rub" ones neck to "rubbing" the ring around the bird's throat to dislodge the catch.
The final line of the poem "nadeshiko no hana" (pinks flowers) is not included in the above translation. Although the flowers describe the image they do not fit easily with the jist of the difficult poem in English. Kobayashi does not include the poem in the Japanese caption. The season is autumn.

Signature: unsigned

Seals: Illegible seal | lower right