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| Just a few feet east of the Gift Shop is a beautifully carved ornamental water basin (tsukubai) in the shape of a boat. Stone basins are used by guests to wash their hands before entering the Tea Room. Water is usually fed through a bamboo pipe called kakehi. This basin, probably of considerable age, originally came from a country estate near Tokyo which had been destroyed during the time of World War II. The basin was purchased by the S. & G. Gump Company in the early 1960s and they presented it to the Tea Garden. If you look closely, you will see a carved turtle on the inside stern of the boat. | ||||||
