A Length of Brown Toned Katazome Cotton: Elaborate Rendering of Phoenixes

late nineteenth century
35"x 13", 89 cm x 33 cm

This length of cloth is unusual for its warm, medium-tone brown color, a color that is rarely seen in katazome cloth.

This piece shows an elaborate repeat pattern of a the mythical phoenix which is depicted in a pose that is typical in Japanese textiles--the phoenix is shown facing the viewer, the body is alert and the fantastically long-feathered tail is splayed out behind it: very showy, very splendid.

Along with the phoenix we see indications of paulownia leaves as the paulownia tree is the only earthly matter that this legendary creature will deign to alight upon.

There are some soft halos around the images, the result of the dyeing method and the cloth shows some light fading and some soft, all over surface wear. It is in good, used condition.

Almost as important as the beautifully done repeat pattern is the wonderful hand spun cotton yarns used to hand weave this length. The tactile quality is exactly what you want to see in an old Japanese folk textile.

Recommended.