Postby davidross » Mon Sep 10, 2012 9:52 am
The characters are 和 (literally, "obedient and gentle"), most likely the master's name and Chinese rather than Japanese.
There appears to be a second hallmark (probably that of a retail shop), opposite the master's mark on the inner far side of the ring on the handle. Please post an image of this second mark.
Without either a retailer's mark or at the very least a silver standard mark, it is difficult to say much about the cup holder, even to positively determine its country of origin, which I would guess is China.
Regards
David R
