[VILLAGE Report vol.40] Nishijin in the west, Kiryu in the east | Gunma Prefecture

Gunma Prefecture’s nationally designated crafts are Kiryu textiles and Isesaki kasuri two items. Both are textiles.

Two names spoken side by side

“Nishijin in the west, Kiryu in the east”. Kiryu has long been spoken of as one of the two towns that represent Japanese textiles.

Nishijin textiles (vol.22) were born when weavers scattered by the Onin War returned. Kiryu, by contrast, was on the side that learned techniques from Nishijin.

In the mid-Edo period, from Nishijin takabata high-loom techniques were introduced, and in the modern period, the town was quick to adopt Western-style power looms.

It is a town that has done both: learning and changing.

Seven techniques under one name

Kiryu textiles A major characteristic is that seven different techniques are collectively designated as one craft. fact.

Omeshi weave, weft brocade weave, warp brocade weave, futsu weave, floating-warp weave, warp-kasuri patterned weave, and mojiri weave.

Usually, craft designation is based on “being made in this way” as a condition. Yuki-tsumugi (vol.38) had to meet all three conditions.

Kiryu, by contrast, includes “what is woven in this town” as a whole.

This is because Kiryu is a town that has accepted a wide range of orders That is why. Obi sashes, kimono fabric, neckties, jacquard: it has woven whatever the times required.

It is the same as Mino ware from Gifu (vol.26) and Kasama ware from Ibaraki (vol.38). The very fact that it can make anything is, in itself, a kind of character.

Kasuri, Everyday Wear

Isesaki kasuri is a woven fabric that creates patterns using threads dyed in advance.

From the Taisho period to the early Showa period, it spread across Japan as an everyday kimono fabric. It was an industry aimed at the same period and the same social groups as Chichibu Meisen from Saitama (vol.36).

Northern Kanto was a region that made everyday clothing for Japanese people.

Why this region? The answer is sericulture connected to UNESCO. It was a center of the silk industry, including Tomioka Silk Mill, and thread was right there in front of them.

Just as Niigata had hemp (vol.33) and Fukui had eyeglasses (vol.30), production areas begin with what is already there.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q. What is “kasuri”?
A. It is a technique in which the parts that will form the pattern are dyed separately at the thread stage before weaving, so the pattern appears once the fabric is woven. The name is said to come from the slightly blurred look of the outlines.

From the next issue, we head to Tohoku. First is Fukushima.

References: Gunma Prefecture, Kiryu City, Isesaki City, Association for the Promotion of Traditional Craft Industries

—The Value Village Editorial Team