I've used this object from our prop house a few times in pics I have taken and kinda/sorta knew what it was but never really had the time or energy to seek out the real answer. Well, I was on the New York Times website and saw a piece in their T Magazine that confirmed my idea.
It is a fabric printing block for Indian block printing. The Times article was on Jaipur. Found this site called Wonderful Workshops. If you have the inclination to travel to India a nicely hand-crafted fabric might just be the perfect object to bring back.
