DESIGN
Kokontozai: KASHIYUKA’s Shop of Japanese Arts and Crafts — Decorative Metal Ornamentation for the Sendai Chest
『カーサ ブルータス』2025年6月号より
| Design | KASHIYUKA’s Shop of Japanese Arts and Crafts | photo_Keisuke Fukamizu hair & make-up_Masako Osuga editor_Masae Wako translation_Mika Yoshida & David G. Imber
Searching all of Japan for handcrafted items that express its heart and soul, our proprietor, KASHIYUKA, presents things that bring a bit of luxury to everyday life. Our travels brought us to Miyagi prefecture’s stately traditional craft, the Sendai tansu. We visited the artisans producing chōkin teuchi kanagu, the hand-engraved metal fittings that beautifully adorn them.
At the studio of Mr. Oda Toshinao, crafter of hand-hammered metal fittings. Observing the making of lock parts for a Sendai tansu, the roots of which derive from the Date clan of antiquity. "It's amazing that such intricate craftsmanship can be achieved entirely by hand," says our shopkeeper KASHIYUKA.
Many traditional Japanese patterns are held to be auspicious, such as dragons, Chinese lions, and peonies. Sendai tansu, chests of drawers, incorporate these patterns decoratively.
They originated among artisans living around the castle area of the Sendai domain (also called the Date domain) toward the end of the 19th century. The basic manufacturing process involves a division of labor between the woodworking, lacquer coating, and crafting the metal fittings. Tansu that were wider for storing long swords and documents were called yarō tansu. In the Meiji era that extended from the end of the 19th century through the beginning of the 20th, these chests became popular among ordinary citizens who preferred more flamboyant and sophisticated metal appointments.
They originated among artisans living around the castle area of the Sendai domain (also called the Date domain) toward the end of the 19th century. The basic manufacturing process involves a division of labor between the woodworking, lacquer coating, and crafting the metal fittings. Tansu that were wider for storing long swords and documents were called yarō tansu. In the Meiji era that extended from the end of the 19th century through the beginning of the 20th, these chests became popular among ordinary citizens who preferred more flamboyant and sophisticated metal appointments.
Purchase No. 85【Decorative Metal Ornamentation for the Sendai Chest】Elegant hand-hammered and engraved metal fittings, adding color and durability to a chest of drawers.
“One major characteristic of the Sendai tansu is that there can be as many as 2-300 metal ornaments on a single unit, including metal parts for locking, corner and edge protection, and handles,” says Mr. Oda Toshinao, who makes most of the huge volume of parts by hand.
He holds 25 years’ experience and is one of the very few remaining craftsmen in Japan handcrafting metal fittings. On this day I observed the making of the lock hardware for drawers and doors.
He holds 25 years’ experience and is one of the very few remaining craftsmen in Japan handcrafting metal fittings. On this day I observed the making of the lock hardware for drawers and doors.
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