Tohoku and more
- Sort by
- Popularity
- Name
-
Takaoka lacquerware Takaoka shikki
- Lacquerware
- Toyama
Takaoka lacquerware (called Takaoka shikki in Japanese) is produced in the area around the city of Takaoka, in Toyama prefecture. A defining feature of this lacquerware is the wide range of techniques and styles. Aogai-nuri is a technique that use…
View more
-
Nara brushes Nara fude
- Writing tools
- Nara
Nara brushes (called Nara fude in Japanese) are brushes produced in and around the neighboring cities of Nara and Yamatokoriyama, Nara prefecture. Nara is considered to be the birthplace of brush making in Japan. The oldest existing brushes in Jap…
View more
-
Chibana-hanaori textiles Chibana hanaori
- Woven textiles
- Okinawa
Chibana hanaori is a textile produced in Chibana, Okinawa, Okinawa prefecture. It has flowery patterns woven in the base textile as well as a continuous geometric pattern. This kind of textile with a continuous geometric pattern is called mon orim…
View more
-
Oitama tsumugi silk Oitama tsumugi
- Woven textiles
- Yamagata
Oitama tsumugi is a silk fabric produced in the Yonezawa, Hakutaka and Nagai regions of Oitama in southern Yamagata prefecture. The area was well-known for producing and exporting ramie, a tall plant of the nettle family that has been used to make…
View more
-
Yaeyama cotton cloth Yaeyama minsa
- Woven textiles
- Okinawa
Yaeyama minsa is a fabric produced in the town of Taketomi, Yaeyama district and the city of Ishigaki, Okinawa prefecture. The origin of this craft is not clear but it is thought that the kasuri belt was brought to Okinawa from Afghanistan via Chi…
View more
-
Yaeyama ramie cloth Yaeyama jofu
- Woven textiles
- Okinawa
Yaeyama jofu is a fabric produced in the area surrounding Yaeyama ward in Ishigaki city, Okinawa prefecture. This textile is woven with hand-spun ramie threads and used to be produced as a tax to the Ryukyu Kingdom (present day Okinawa) in ancient…
View more
-
Naruko lacquerware Naruko shikki
- Lacquerware
- Miyagi
Naruko lacquerware (called Naruko shikki in Japanese) is a form of lacquerware produced around the city of Osaki, Miyagi prefecture. Lacquerware is a craft coating layers of lacquer on wooden tableware and other utensils. Lacquerware is produced i…
View more
-
Shuri brocade Shuri ori
- Woven textiles
- Okinawa
Shuri brocade (called Shuri ori in Japanese) is a woven fabric produced on the main island of Okinawa. There are two types of fabric, kasuri orimono and mon orimono, and these include hanaui, hanakura ori, doton ori, kasuri and minsa. The Ryukyu …
View more
-
Yame lanterns Yame chochin
- Other crafts
- Fukuoka
Yame Lanterns (called Yame Chochin in Japanese) are a type of lantern craft produced in the region around Yame, Fukuoka prefecture. This craft has a bamboo frame and a fire box with beautifully painted flowers, birds, and plants. The bamboo frame …
View more
-
Yomitanzan-hanaori textiles Yomitanzan hanaori
- Woven textiles
- Okinawa
Yomitanzan hanaori is a textile produced in the village of Yomitan, Okinawa. The threads of this craft are first dyed before being woven in a geometric, flowerlike design. This craft is woven with silk or cotton threads dyed with plant-based dyes …
View more
-
Amakusa ceramics Amakusa tojiki
- Ceramic
- Kumamoto
Amakusa ware (called Amakusa Tojiki in Japanese) is a form of pottery or porcelain baked in the Amakusa region of Kumamoto prefecture. The name was newly applied when the craft was designated as a national traditional craft. In Amakusa, where high…
View more
-
Echu traditional Japanese paper Echu washi
- Traditional Japanese paper
- Toyama
Etchu washi is traditional Japanese paper made in Asahi, Yatsuo, and Taira in Toyama prefecture. Each production area makes their own type of washi which are called Gokayama washi, Yatsuo washi, and Birudan washi. This craft has slight regional va…
View more
-
Miyagi kokeshi doll Miyagi dento kokeshi
- Dolls, kokeshi
- Miyagi
Miyagi Kokeshi Dolls (called Miyagi Dento Kokeshi in Japanese) are wooden dolls produced in and around the cities of Sendai and Shiraishi, Miyagi prefecture. Categorized based on region into five styles including Naruko kokeshi and Togatta kokeshi…
View more
-
Okuaizu Basketry Oku aizu amikumi zaiku
- Wood, bamboo crafts
- Fukushima
Okuaizu Basketry, called Okuaizu Amikumi Zaiku in Japanese, is basketry produced around Mishima Town, Onuma County, Fukushima Prefecture. As this mountainous area in the Okuaizu region has much snow and farmers are unable to work in the fields in …
View more
-
Ryukyu traditional textiles Ryukyu bingata
- Dyed textiles
- Okinawa
Ryukyu Bingata is a dyed and woven textile produced around Shuri, Okinawa prefecture. Its origin goes back to the 14th to 15th century. The ladies of the royal family or the families of the warrior class wore Ryukyu Bingata. There are two kinds of…
View more
-
Uetsu tilia bark cloth Uetsu shinafu
- Woven textiles
- Yamagata
Uetsu Shinafu is a textile produced in the area of Sekikawa, Tsuruoka, Yamagata prefecture, and Sanpoku, Murakami, Niigata prefecture. The names of the neighboring prefectures of Yamagata (Uzen) and Niigata (Echigo) are combined and called Uetsu, …
View more
-
Higo inlays Higo zogan
- Metal works
- Kumamoto
Higo Zogan is inlaid metal work produced in Kumamoto, Kumamoto prefecture. This craft was formerly used to adorn the gun barrels or sword guards of samurai. Today, however, the skills are used to make personal accessories or interior ornaments. Th…
View more
-
Takayama tea whisks Takayama chasen
- Wood, bamboo crafts
- Nara
Takayama Tea Whisks, called Takayama Chasen in Japanese, are tea whisks produced in Takayama Town, Ikoma City, Nara Prefecture. Each tea whisk is completely made by hand and they have a top class share in the total Japanese tea whisk market. The t…
View more
-
Akita cedar tubs and barrels Akita sugi oke taru
- Wood, bamboo crafts
- Akita
Akita-sugi Oke Taru are handmade Akita cedar tubs and barrels produced from locally grown cedar timber in the cities of Odate and Noshiro of Akita Prefecture since around the late Heian period (11th century). Products made of straight grain wood w…
View more
-
Kijoka banana fiber cloth Kijoka no bashofu
- Woven textiles
- Okinawa
Kijoka no Bashofu are a woven cloth produced in Kijoka, Ogimi Village in northern Okinawa. Bashofu is made from the fibers of the Japanese banana plant called Basho, and has been used to make kimonos in Okinawa since ancient times. Kijoka no Basho…
View more
-
Yamagata Buddhist altar Yamagata butsudan
- Household Buddhist altars
- Yamagata
Yamagata Butsudan are Buddhist altars mainly made in Yamagata City, Tendo City, Obanazawa City, and Sakata City, Yamagata Prefecture, which distinguishes the prefecture as the largest center of altar production in the Tohoku region. Kichibei HOSHI…
View more
-
Yame-fukushima Buddhist altar Yame fukushima butsudan
- Household Buddhist altars
- Fukuoka
Yame Fukushima Butsudan are Buddhist altars made in Yame City (former Fukushima Town), Fukushima Prefecture. Dotted with many temples, the Yame region had been a place where there were many devout Buddhists since ancient times, which supported the…
View more
-
Makabe stone lanterns Makabe ishidoro
- Stonework
- Ibaraki
Makabe Ishitoro is the Japanese name for Makabe stone lanterns produced around the town of Makabe in the Ibaraki Prefecture. Production of this traditional craftwork started during the Kamakura period (1185-1333). The stone industry in the Makabe …
View more
-
Shogawa woodcraft Shogawa hikimono kiji
- Industrial art materials and tools
- Toyama
Shogawa woodcrafts are mostly woodcraft articles such as bowls or trays made in a wide area of the Toyama Prefecture including the city of Takaoka and the city of Tonami. Shogawa woodcrafts were designated as a traditional craft by the Ministry of…
View more
-
Yonaguni brocade Yonaguni ori
- Woven textiles
- Okinawa
Yonaguni Brocade, called Yonaguni Ori in Japanese, is a textile produced in Yonaguni-cho, Yaeyama Gun, Okinawa Prefecture. The characteristic of Yonaguni Ori is the simple beauty of the textile that is dyed and woven by hand in the distinctive cli…
View more
-
Yuntanza minsa Yomitanzan minsa
- Woven textiles
- Okinawa
Yuntanza Minsa is a textile produced in the region around Yomitanson, Nakagami-gun, Okinawa prefecture. Min means "cotton" and sa means "narrow belt". Narrow belts were made in various regions in Okinawa from ancient times. Bas…
View more
-
Etchu Fukuoka Sedge Hats Etchu Fukuoka no suge gasa
- Other crafts
- Toyama
Etchu Fukuoka no suge gasa, Etchu Fukuoka Sedge Hats, are a traditional craft produced in Takaoka, Tonami, Oyabe, and Nanto of Toyama prefecture. The sedges produced in Fukuoka, Toyama are top quality as they survive the severe winters of the Hok…
View more
-
Flower pattern textiles Haebaru hanaori
- Woven textiles
- Okinawa
Haebaru flower patterned textiles called Haebaru Hanaori in Japanese, are made in the city of Haebaru in the Okinawa Prefecture. Plants harvested in the prefecture such as garcinia or Assam indigo are used to dye the yarns. Haebaru Hanaori can be …
View more
-
Nara Ink Nara sumi
- Writing tools
- Nara
Nara Ink, called Nara Sumi in Japanese, is Japanese ink (sumi) produced in Nara, Nara prefecture. It was the second sumi, following Suzuka Sumi of Mie prefecture, to be designated as a traditional craft. There are two types of sumi; shoenboku, mad…
View more
-
Oku-Aizu Showa Karamushi Textiles Okuaizu showa karamushi ori
- Woven textiles
- Fukushima
Oku-Aizu Showa Karamushi Textiles (Oku-Aizu Karamushi Ori in Japanese) are a textile fabric produced in Showa Village of Ohnuma, Fukushima Prefecture. It is made from ramie, which is an urticaceous plant also known as China grass. Fine hemp cloth …
View more