A Child's Meisen Silk Kimono: Gorgeous Semamori

early to mid twentieth century
36" x 34", 91.5 cm x 86.5 cm

This beautiful, child's kimono is fashioned from a very handsomely patterned meisen silk, the long sleeves perfectly suited to the kasuri striped "arrow feather" pattern woven into the silk cloth.

The back of this child's kimono is embroidered with a lovely yellow running stitch that travels up the center of the back of the garment to the nape then falls in almost a 45 degree angle downward toward the left.

This yellow stitching is called semamori which is a stitch thought to protect the wearer from illness or bad luck: the fact that it is left-oriented tells us that this was a boy's kimono.

Two semamori can also be seen holding the red silk sash in place on the front of the kimono: the semamori here are stitched to resemble the auspicious noshi, a traditional design meant to confer good or celebratory wishes.

The kimono is in remarkably good condition for its age, in fact it seems to be almost unworn.

With its lavish semamori and it beautiful colored and dyed silk, this is a very handsome child's kimono.

Recommended