Incense burner in the shape of a Chinese boy on a water buffalo

Tea houses and traditional Japanese houses have a built-in recessed display space called tokonoma. The tokonoma is usually decorated with a hanging scroll, flower arrangement, and small object like dolls or incense burners according to the season. For a tea ceremony, the host would consider the participants and occasion to create a special collection of objects called toriawase to commemorate the event. Toriawase includes not only the objects in the tokonoma but also extends to the utensils and implements used in the ceremony, including the tea bowl, scoop, and fresh water container.