Yoshio Okiyama was bone in Hakone, Japan in 1924 and died in 2003. He started making traditional Japanese puzzle boxes at the age of twelve, while an apprentice of his father, Yoshitaro Okiyama. He has won many awards for his puzzle boxes. He developed the mechanism for the twenty-seven, fifty-four and sixty-six move boxes. He is recognized as a third generation master craftsman, yet has never had an apprentice. In 1994, he was given a commendation by the Association of Traditional Crafts Development Industry in Japan. After becoming ill in 2000, he became unable to work and died in 2003.