Japanese covered jar, Iwami Ware?

This covered jar is 4.25" high x 4" in diameter and weighs 18.5 ounces, no maker's mark. The tomobako is 6" x 6" x 5.5" high and weighs 12 ounces. It was purchased new in Japan in 1980 and has been in storage since.

I've been looking at this for a few months and it really bugs me. I am a perfectionist by nature and sometimes the concept of wabi sabi is really irritating. I can embrace repair of broken things and allowing distortion of other things as part of the process of making it, but all of the flaws in the making of this piece seem so deliberate and forced that I at first walked away from it. What kept bringing me back to it was the idea that its maker felt it was special enough to put in a tomobako, though what appears to be a mass produced one. I finally caved in an bought it.

I have been looking for a ceramic tea caddy and while that may not be the purpose intended for this jar, it will suffice. Maker unknown, and I have put a bit of effort into trying to identify it and the style of pottery.

Update: After some research, I believe that this may be Iwami Ware, possibly made by the Yoshida kiln. Possibly for use in making Miso or for storing and making pickled food.

""Iwami ware" is a general term for pottery produced mainly in Etsu City and Hamada City in Shimane Prefecture, which are high-quality pottery land zones (tsunotsu formation).

In the middle of the Edo Period (1763), the manufacturing method was transmitted from the Iwakuni domain of the Zhou defense province (near present-day Yamaguchi Prefecture), and in the 1780s, potters in Bizen Province (near present-day Okayama Prefecture) taught the method of making large-scale pottery, and "water bottles (mizugame)" etc. for preserving water began to be produced. Unlike today, in the days when there was no running water, a large turtle that could store the accumulated water was a necessity in every household.

At the end of the Edo period, the clan elders at that time encouraged the production of pottery, so the number of kilns also increased, and it became a major water bottle production area. By that time, transportation by shipping route had been established, and sales channels had expanded from Hokkaido to Kyushu, and the name "Iwami no handu" suddenly spread throughout the country and became familiar.

From around the middle of the Taisho Period, not only large-scale pottery but also products such as tea ware and bowls diversified, and with the opening of the San-in main line of the railway, sales channels expanded further, and it reached its heyday until the early Showa Period.

After that, Japan entered a period of high economic growth from World War II, and with the development of water supply systems and the spread of plastic containers, the "Iwami no handu", which was once useful as an indispensable item, began to lurk in the shadows.
as a result, many kilns were hit hard, and the kilns that are said to have had 100 kilns at their peak were forced to close their businesses one after another. Even under such severe circumstances, there is a kiln that has made efforts to respond to the needs of the market. the "Yoshida Ceramics", which is the kiln of "kame" introduced this time, is one of them. Perhaps because of this, Iwami ware was designated as a "traditional craft" in April 1994.

And now, Iwami Ware has been reviewed as a pottery of reliable quality that makes use of tradition with a rustic texture handmade, and has gained high praise from many people."

More information here:

https://kogeijapan.com/locale/en_US/iwamiyaki/

https://www.japanese-tc.com/2022/08/iwami-ware-shimane.html