A Large Stitched Sakabukuro: Sake Filter

ca. mid twentieth century
34 1/2" x 11 1/2", 87.5 cm x 29 cm

Sakabukuro, or sake straining bags are made of cotton and are saturated with green persimmon tannin, or kaki shibu, which gives the bag's cotton cloth a distinctive brown color.  This beautifully mended utilitarian textile was used in the sake making process.

Crude sake, or sake lees, was placed in this bag and pressure was applied to squeeze out the filtered liquid. Repeated use required repeated mending and we see here the wonderfully odd stitches applied for this purpose. 

This bag shows mending in the form of thick, cotton stitches, primarily at the bottom of the bag. The top hem is machine stitched.  In recent years very good sakabukuro, like this one, have become more and more difficult to find, in large part due to their attractiveness and the fact that they have become a popular, collectible item.

A really wonderful sakabukuro.