Small kokeshi by Okuyama Koji. The smaller the kokeshi doll, the more precious and rare it is.
Born June 10, 1934, as the eldest son of Kiyoji and Hatsue Okuyama in Hijiori Onsen, Mogami County, Yamagata Prefecture. Around 1949, he learned woodworking from his father Kiyoji. In 1952, he worked at the Okura Mining Office of Toho Zinc, but in 1959, when the Okura Mining Office closed, he was transferred to the Hashima Sales Office of the Tsushima Mining Office in Kyushu, and the following year, he quit and returned home. Around 1978, he moved his workshop from the hot spring town to Kawamuki and continued to work. In the 1990s, his health began to deteriorate, and his production volume decreased. He passed away on September 21, 2008, at the age of 75.
