A Length of Low Contrast Figured Cloth: Nagoya Sarasa

early to mid twentieth century
61" x 13 1/2", 155 cm x 34 cm

This is a beautifully designed length of cotton of a type referred to as Nagoya sarasa. Sarasa is the Japanese term given to Indian trade cloth, so referring to this as sarasa  indicates that the design on this length gives a nod to cloth of Indian orgin.

The design of the pattern is large in scale and the restrained color and close value contrast of the colors makes for an elegant length of cloth.

The design is elegant and subtle. It shows a repeat pattern of symmetrically place pairs of  phoenixes, the design is a bit darker in tone than the background making for a soft, overall visual effect.

The cloth shows all over, soft, vertical dents or gullies. This is due to the fact that for decades this cloth was sitting on top of the cotton batting of a futon cover and the cloth itself was "molded" by the substrate, in this case, cotton batting.

An interesting length of cloth, probably dating to the 1930s or 40s, this fancifully designed length of cotton is a bit of a rarity and is in good, used condition.

Lovely.