A Three Panel Cloth of Zanshi Ori: Indigo Dyed Cotton

early twentieth century
51" x 37 1/2", 129.5 cm x 95.25

Zanshi ori is cloth that is woven from threads either leftover from home production of yarn making, or from broken threads that were purchased from local commercial weavers.  Usually the weft is fed with these random threads while generally the warp is regulated producing an irregular horizontal 'striping'; if home threads are used, knotted slubs can often be seen.

This three-panel cloth is interesting because we can assume it was stitched from one bolt that was woven using leftover weft yarns: the irregular striping attests to this or infers this.

The surface is pitted or threadbare in places and there is a patch. The color is faded but nicely indigo and the way the randomly arranged horizontal stripes move over surface of this cloth is a joy to behold.

The perimeter of the cloth is ragged in areas which is not inconsistent with the overall, used condition of the piece.

Really beautiful, and unusual type of zanshi ori, and recommended.