Sad Kokeshis 悲しいこけし

While I was off living in the Middle East Naoko of course continued to collect kokeshis, bringing a number of nice pieces into the house. The two I'll discuss today, which came from the Tsugaru Kokeshi Kan 津軽こけし館, are Naruko kokeshis 鳴子系こけし by the late Mr. Igarashi Isamu 五十嵐勇さん who passed away in 2011. They're small, about five inches high, and I really like them. I would also like to point out that these may be our most forelorn-looking kokeshis, or perhaps they're pensive and slightly sad. There's nothing that says a kokeshi has to be happy and smiley, right?
According to the Tsugaru Kokeshi Kan's blog, they contacted Mr. Igarashi about getting some of his kokeshis for an event, not knowing that he had died. Mrs. Igarashi responded and said she thought there might still be some kokeshis in the house. She did indeed find a bunch of her husband's kokeshis around the house and hoped that kokeshi enthusiasts would enjoy having them, sending them for the Kokeshi Kan to sell. Naoko was lucky enough to get these two. Price: 2,000 yen for the pair. Beautiful work.