A woven bamboo object found in an antique shop in Kyoto, Japan. I believe the owner said it had something to do with tea. Does anyone know what this is?

A woven bamboo object found in an antique shop in Kyoto, Japan. I believe the owner said it had something to do with tea. Does anyone know what this is?
Answer: “I actually know this. These are tiny mockups of what they used to use on riversides to stop erosion. Now they’re mostly just decorations or hashi holders (chopsticks holders, but they have much smaller ones; I have some in my cup), so your food-covered hashi doesn’t touch the table.”