A Cotton Bag of Treasured Cloth: Wa Sarasa and Tambafu

late nineteenth, early twentieth century
25" x 8", 61 cm x 20.25 cm

This old, faded, threadbare and somewhat faded bag is made of beautiful, old cloth, the central sliver being of an "important" genre of Japanese folk textiles.

One of the prime reasons to acquire this bag would be to own a narrow yet battered piece of treasured Tambafu, the rustic cotton and raw silk cloth cited as an important cultural property by the founder of the Mingei movement, Yanagi Soetsu and which is still exalted in Japan today.

Tambafu is the plaid cloth at the center of this bag. It shows a fair amount of loss as can be seen. Its esteemed value in Japan is not to be understated.

The cotton cloth that surrounds it is an Indian-inspired, Japanese-produced cotton called wa sararsa or Japanese-style Indian chintz. The pattern is faded and shows a repeat of diamonds and stylized flowers.

This type of bag was probably used for the storage of lacquer bowls.

Recommended for the fragment of Tambfu.