shoji
Shoji (障子 しょうじ) Shoji are traditional Japanese sliding doors. Japanese paper is pasted over a wooden latticework, and usually one door slides past the other. They are used in Japanese‐style rooms as partitions or doors, and they can also be fitted into windows. The light shining through shoji can fill rooms with a nice and […]
ozashiki
Zashiki (座敷 ざしき) A zashiki refers to a tatami‐matted Japanese‐style room, and in particular a room for entertaining guests. A zashiki commonly has a Japanese‐style alcove called a tokonoma that holds decorative materials such as kakejiku (a Japanese‐style painting or piece of calligraphy) and a flower arrangement. In business, when you serve guests, you may use […]
Mizuhiki (水引 みずひき)
Mizuhiki (水引 みずひき) In Japan, strands of paper string (mizuhiki) are used to decorate gifts and ceremonial utensils in much the same way ribbons are used in the West. Not only are they colorful, but a mark of elegance and respect. When you attend a wedding ceremony, you put a congratulatory gift money in these […]
hanko
Hanko (はんこ) A hanko, or personal seal used as a legal method of identification in Japan. The engraving of seals is an art in itself, the best seals being carved from ivory and the poorest from rubber with various gradations of quality in between. A careful observer can tell what a seal is made of […]
Kumade and Engi-Kumade
Kumade and Engi-Kumade Kumade as a Farm Tool Kumade is used for a variety of purposes, such as collecting dead leaves, raking hay, and softening and leveling the soil. Modern rakes have teeth made of steel, plastic, or other materials, but in the past, some rakes were made of wood or cast iron. The handle […]
Mikoshi
Mikoshi (Mikoshi 神輿) A mikoshi, or portable shrine, is a temporary house for the spirit of the deity for whom the festival is being held and is carried on the shoulders of a group of men and sometimes women. Wherever the mikoshi is carried, a sacred purifying force is believed to cleanse the area, radiating […]
Koto
Koto 琴（こと） The sound of the koto, a thirteen stringed zither or harp, is to many people the sound of Japan. Japan’s most popular traditional musical instrument, it is widely played even today. Two meters in length, it is made of hollowed-out paulownia wood. First brought to Japan from China in the eleventh century, the […]
Sakazuki and Tokkuri
Sakazuki and Tokkuri Tokkuri, a ceramic bottle used for heating and serving sake (Japanese rice wine), and matching sakazuki (also called ochoko), a cup for drinking sake, were started to be produced in Bizen, Okayama Prefecture in the Kamakura period (1192-1333). Bizen ware is known for its rustic simplicity and refined elegance and has retained […]
Montsuki Hakama
Montsuki （紋付き もんつき）and Hakama （袴 はかま） A montsuki is garment bearing a family crest or (a kimono with one's family crest on it). Considered formal wear, montsuki were traditionally worn to weddings, official meetings, and other special occasions, though they are rarely seen today. The family crests which appear on these montsuki, however, originated in […]