The history of Kawatsura Lacquerware is traditionally traced back about 800 years to the Kamakura period. Around 1193, Michinori, the younger brother of Onodera Shigemichi, lord of Inaniwa Castle and a retainer of Minamoto no Yoritomo, is said to have established a residence in what is now the Odate area of Kawatsura and instructed his retainers to apply lacquer to sword scabbards, bows, armor, and other military equipment.

Although the craft initially centered on lacquered arms and armor, the techniques gradually came to be applied to objects used in everyday life. By around the seventeenth century, bowl making had developed into a significant local industry, and records indicate that approximately 26 households in and around Kawatsura were engaged in producing wooden bowls.

From the middle to the late Edo period, distribution expanded beyond the local domain, and production grew to include trays, tiered boxes, and other household wares in addition to bowls. Decorative techniques such as chinkin and maki-e were also introduced, adding more elaborate finishes to the region’s practical lacquerware.

During the Meiji period, the industry became increasingly organized. In 1896, a local lacquerware trade association was established, while changes in production technology, including water-powered, treadle-operated, and later electric lathes, supported further development of the craft.

After World War II, demand increased for soup bowls used in ordinary households as well as trays and bowls supplied to inns and other establishments. Kawatsura Lacquerware became widely distributed as practical lacquerware for daily use.

On December 15, 1976, Kawatsura Lacquerware was designated as a Traditional Craft by the Japanese government. Today, artisans in Kawatsura continue to preserve techniques such as smoke drying, hana-nuri, chinkin, and maki-e while producing lacquerware suited to contemporary life.

1. 1. Wood Wood such as beech and Japanese horse chestnut are used for round pieces like bowls. Magnolia, Japanese cedar, and cypress are used for square pieces such as stacked boxes and for round trays. Kawatsura Lacquerware is produced by the abundant forest resources at the base of the Ou mountain range in Akita prefecture. The trees that provide wood are at least two hundred years old, and thorough mountain maintenance is done to prevent deforestation.
2. 2. Wood collection Wood is cut into round slices. Then, the wood is cut to an approximate size suited to its future use, while avoiding knots or damaged parts, and turned into block shapes.
3. 3. Rough sawing This step involves cutting the collected block-shaped wood into the form of the container. Wood is mounted on a lathe and the inside is cut out while the outside is roughly sawn. Afterward, it is boiled to remove tannin from the wood. This also prevents the wood from bending and provides protection from insects.
4. 4. Drying In order to further protect the wood from being warped, the articles are placed inside a room where smoke circulates for a period of one month. The wood smokes and dries so that the amount of moisture becomes around 10%.
5. 5. Sawn finishing This is the final wood base process. Dried wood is again mounted on a lathe and the surface is sawn with a hand plane to produce a smooth, beautiful finish. The base of the bowl is sawn to further complete the bowl shape.
6. 6. Charcoal application Next is the process of undercoating, which is a unique feature of Kawatsura Lacquerware. A mixture of persimmon juice and charcoal powder is applied onto the piece with a straw brush. Then it dries and is polished. Finally, a coating of persimmon juice is applied before the items dries and is polished again.
7. 7. Undercoating A paintbrush produced from the tail of a horse is used to apply the raw lacquer so that it is rubbed in. By repeating the persimmon juice polishing and this undercoating step five to six times, the wood grain will be prevented from having moisture permeate, and pieces can be finished as durable lacquerware without any warping. This is the final undercoating process.
8. 8. Intermediate coating, final coating, and hananuri After undercoating, progress is gradually made from intermediate coating to final coating while adjusting the hue of the lacquer in order to reach the finishing color. The coating and polishing process is repeated six to seven times, but on each occasion it is necessary to thoroughly dry the lacquer before applying the next layer. Precise perception of subtle changes to lacquer caused by temperature or humidity is crucial.
   Then a finishing technique called hananuri is done. This involves drying the item after applying lacquer, but without polishing. To prevent uneven coating, brushstrokes or dust on the items, advanced technique and careful attention is required.
   Depending on the item, chinkin (gold inlay carving) or maki-e (gold or silver lacquering) is applied in order to give a more brilliant finish to the lacquerware.
   Kawatsura Lacquerware is completed by splitting the production process jobs among many artisans. Due to the many steps involved, it takes approximately one year to finish each item.