[VILLAGE Report vol.20] 80% of Donabe Clay Pots Are Fired in This Town | Mie Prefecture

Mie Prefecture’s national designations are Yokkaichi Banko ware, Iga braided cords, Suzuka sumi ink, Iga ware and Ise katagami stencil paper in total.

These 5 are completely different in character.

80% of the winter dining table

Yokkaichi Banko ware is, It is said to hold about 80% of Japan’s domestic share for earthenware pots according to estimates.

If you imagine that 80% of the earthenware pots being used in homes somewhere tonight were fired in this town, it feels a little mysterious.

Its strength is heat resistance By blending in a mineral called petalite, the clay body became less likely to crack even when placed over direct flame.

It began in the middle of the Edo period. Nunami Rozan stamped it with a mark meaning “unchanging for all time” which is said to be the origin of its name.

Ceramics named “unchanging for all time” went on to become pots, one of the most breakage-prone ways to be used and took 80% of the national market. It has lived up to its name.

Not a craft, but a “tool”

Ise katagami stencil paper is stencil paper made in Shiroko and Jike in Suzuka City. When dyeing kimono, it is placed over cloth to transfer patterns.

And here is the important point.

Ise katagami is nationally designated not as a “craft,” but as a “tool” used to make crafts. This was the first example of designation as a tool.

Neither Kyoto yuzen nor Tokyo komon could be dyed without this paper. As the behind-the-scenes support for other production areas, it supplies almost all of Japan.

Kochi’s Tosa washi was paper for repairing cultural properties. Mie’s Ise katagami is paper for dyeing kimono. Paper becomes strong in places where it is not the star itself.

Another sumi ink

Suzuka sumi ink is one of the few nationally designated sumi inks, alongside Nara sumi ink.

As noted in the previous issue, more than 90% of sumi ink is made in Nara. Much of the rest is here in Suzuka.

The production area with 90%, and the production area that supports what lies beyond it. I think there is meaning in the fact that both are designated.

The two from Iga

Iga braided cords is a craft in which silk threads are braided into obijime cords and haori cords. Iga ware is high-fired, unglazed ware made with highly fire-resistant clay. As with Banko ware, fire-resistant clay was an asset of this region.

5 items, all with different roles

Taking 80% with pots. Supporting other production areas with stencil paper. Supplementing Nara with sumi ink. Braiding cords. High-firing clay.

It is rare to find a prefecture where roles are divided this clearly within a single region.

Next issue: Shiga. Craftspeople who made arms and armor begin making something completely different.

References: Mie Prefecture; Yokkaichi City; Suzuka City; Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, “Designation of Traditional Crafts”; Association for the Promotion of Traditional Craft Industries

—The Value Village Editorial Team

Photo: uemura / CC BY 2.0 (Wikimedia Commons)