The painted wooden tablet is adorned with a floral arch on top under which there is an image of Ganesha installed on a lotus platform with his mouse-vehicle next to him. The inscription on the pad mainly records the details of its ownership. The gable-shaped peg on top is to facilitate hanging of the tablet on wall.
The pad was used for placing a writing paper on it. Ganesha is considered to be a deity connected with learning and writing. It is believed by the Hindus that the Sage Vyasa, the composer of the epic Mahabharata, dictated the text of the epic to Ganesha.