Suzuka
Suzuka Inksticks
Soot from burnt rapeseed oil kneaded with glue; the fineness of the particles decides the ink's colour and bleed.
Japan library380 entries
13,910 entries. Some places appear in more than one collection. Confirm visits with each facility.
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MieArt & CraftsYokkaichi
Banko Ware
Eighty percent of Japan's clay pots; the district developed a heat-proof body, and its unglazed teapots fire purple-brown.
MieArt & CraftsKuwana
Kuwana Ironware
Casting since the Edo period, from cooking pots to - today - a large share of Japan's manhole covers.
MieArt & CraftsKuwana
Kuwana Senbazuru
Multiple cranes folded from one sheet, still joined; a 1797 book records 49 different configurations.
Matsusaka
Matsusaka Cotton
Striped cotton that swept Edo: sober enough to slip past sumptuary law, but luxurious in the quality of its thread.
MieArt & CraftsIga
Iga Braided Cords
Silk threads crossed on a wooden stand; the craft moved from sword cords to kimono sashes and survived.
Kameyama
Candles of Kameyama
Candle making began in the Showa period and developed as a local industry; the Japanese candle is wound from paper and rush pith.
Ise
Gikakushi Paper of Ise
Paper lacquered and embossed to pass as leather, made for pilgrims, lost, and recently reconstructed.
ShigaArt & CraftsKoka
Shigaraki Ware
One of the six ancient kilns; feldspar in the coarse clay bursts white through the surface, and fire and ash mark each pot differently.
Aisho
Omi Jofu Ramie Cloth
Fine summer ramie whose kasuri patterns are made by pressing dye onto the threads with a comb.
Otsu
Buddhist Implements of Otsu
Serving the demand of Mt Hiei and Kyoto, workshops here still handle single stages of the trade.
ShigaArt & CraftsHikone
Hikone Butsudan
Armourers turned to altars in peacetime; seven separate trades now build each one.
ShigaArt & CraftsKoka
Shigaraki Tanuki
Spread nationwide after an imperial visit; each of the eight things the badger carries stands for a virtue.
Omihachiman
Reed Screens of Omi
Lakeside reeds cut and woven into screens and thatch - wetland management and craft as a single job.
KyotoArt & CraftsKyoto
Nishijin Textiles
Named for the camp of a 15th-century war where the weavers regrouped; still built on small runs and divided labour.
KyotoArt & CraftsKyoto
Kyo Yuzen Dyeing
Paste is drawn along every outline to keep the colours apart, leaving the fine white line that identifies the technique.
KyotoArt & CraftsKyoto
Kyo Ware and Kiyomizu Ware
Not tied to local clay: materials were brought in from everywhere to meet each commission, which is why the styles multiplied.
KyotoArt & CraftsKyoto
Karakami Woodblock Paper
Mica pressed from woodblocks onto paper by hand, so the pattern appears and vanishes as the light moves.
KyotoArt & CraftsYosano
Tango Chirimen Silk Crepe
Silk hard-twisted then shrunk in hot water to raise its crinkled surface; most of Japan's undyed kimono cloth is woven here.
Kyoto
Kyoto Dolls and Joinery
Head, hair, limbs and costume are each made by a different specialist - the division of labour on which nearly all Kyoto craft runs.
KyotoArt & CraftsKyoto
Kyoto Buddhist Implements
With every sect's head temple in one city, demand never stopped; more than ten trades touch a single altar.
Sakai
Sakai Blades
Sakai mass-produced the first Japanese guns; that forging skill turned into knives, and most professional chefs' blades still come from here.
Sakai
Sakai Chusen Dyeing
Dye poured through stencilled paste so it soaks clean through - the cloth comes out identical on both faces.