Unlike in those days when everyone wore kimono, Tsutomu Takeuchi's customers today are somewhat limited in number: hairdressers for sumo wrestlers, theatrical coiffeurs and makers of Japanese coiffure bridal wigs, and a few longtime aficionados.

Takeuchi is the 14th generation proprietor of Jusan-ya, a store specializing in tsuge-gushi, boxwood combs, since its establishment in 1736. "Plastic combs are made by pouring the mixture into a mold. We fashion each comb according to the features of the particular piece of wood," says the craftsman, sitting in his storefront workplace. Next to him, his son is busy planing the palm-sized pieces of boxwood.

The compact store, facing the south end of Shinobazu Pond in Tokyo's Ueno, displays combs of all shapes and sizes, as well as ornamental hairpins and earpicks made of boxwood. The name of the store literally means 13, derived from "nine" and "four." The two numbers can be read as ku and shi, making up, when combined, the Japanese word for comb.