pieces). In , the shell is often cut with a scroll saw, then finished with a file or rubstone before application. In , the thinner shell pieces are usually made using a template and a special punch. is fashioned similarly to . Methods of application are varied. Thick shell pieces may be inlaid into pre-carved settings, while thinner pieces may be pressed into a very thick coating of lacquer, or applied using an adhesive and then lacquered over. Other methods use acid washing and lacquering to produce different effects. is especially combined with – gold or silver lacquer sprinkled with metal powder as a decoration. History was imported to Nara period (710–794 CE) Japan from Tang Dynasty China (618–907 CE) and was used in mosaics and other items in combination with amber and tortoise shell. developed rapidly in the Heian period (794–1185), and was used in architecture as well as lacquerware. has been used in combination with , a unique Japanese technique, since the Heian period. In the Kamakura period (1185–1333), was a popular saddle decoration. experienced rapid growth through Japan's Azuchi-Momoyama period (1568–1600), when Japan's borders were still open to the outside world, until the early 17th century, before the isolationism instituted by the policy of the Edo period (1603–1867). The technique was often used in the creation of European-style items, such as chests of drawers and coffee cups, and was very popular in Europe, as the mother-of-pearl covering the items contributed to their status as a unique luxury. The Japanese referred to these goods as " lacquerware", with meaning "Southern Barbarians", a term borrowed from the Chinese and, in 16th century Japan, meaning any foreigner, especially a European. The lacquerware exported during the Edo period put more emphasis on artistic expression by using gold powder lavishly than . Until the 1690s, the Dutch East India Company monopolized the export of Japanese lacquerware throughout Europe, but the lacquerware using technique using a large amount of gold was so expensive that the customers were limited to royalty and nobility, and after 1690, it was exported through private trade. After the Opening of Japan to foreign trade in the 1850s, work for export markets soon became significant again. The Somada style and Shibayama style lacquerware using the technique became popular and were exported in large quantities from Yokohama to Europe and the United States. Somada ware is a style invented by