Futaoki, or lid rests, are used in tea ceremonies as rests to put the teakettle lid of the water ladle. They are made of various shapes and materials.
This crab-shaped lid rest is made of copper. It is one of seven kinds of lid rests, which are: ‘lids resembling an incense burner’, ‘tripod’, ‘tre-foiled shape’, ‘a man looking into a well’, ‘turban shell’, ‘three human figures’, and ‘crab’. These lid rests were selected by Sen no Rikyu, a great tea master in the 16th century.