ca. early twentieth century
28 3/4" x 13", 73 cm x 33 cm, each leg

What a fabulous pair of heavily patched, boro, cotton momohiki or work pants.

The profusion of patches and exuberant stitching are dense and all.  This is a really fantastic aspect to these momohiki, and is what one would hope for in a boro textile, especially one that is intact, as this one is.

Momohiki are a form of Japanese work trousers of which there are several.  These are wrapped around the waist in a certain way, for modesty's sake--see here--while at the same time allowing for enough range of motion for the farmer to do his or her work.

For those who dare, these trousers are still wearable, but for those who have more of a collector's eye, these are wonderful momhiki to add to your collection.