A Beautifully Mended Sakabukuro: Patches

early twentieth century
28 1/2" x 9", 72.5 cm x 23 cm

Sakabukuro, or sake straining bags, are beautiful textiles. Made of cotton which is saturated with green persimmon tannin, or kaki shibu this utilitarian textile was used in sake making.

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

This is a particularly nice and highly unusual example of a sakabukuro as it shows beautiful mending in the form of unintentionally and artfully arranged patches on its two sides.

Moreover, this sakabukuro carries with it a distinguished provenance as it was exhibited in three museum exhibitions:

“Boro: The Fabric of Life,” June 7 – September 15, 2013, Domaine de Boisbuchet, Lessac, France

“Japão a Cru, Boro: O Tecido da Vida,” September 10, 2014 – February 8, 2015, Museu do Design e da Moda, Lisbon, Portugal

“Boro: Stoffe des Lebens,” 28 March – August 2, 2015, Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst, Cologne, Germany

This is a handsome sakabukuro with appealing repairs and, more than that, it is an unusual example of this genre of utilitarian cloth, and one that has been set apart to be shown in edified situations.

Recommended.