A Generous Length of Old Katazome Cotton: Hand Spun Yarns

late nineteenth century
65" x 13 1/4", 165 cm x 33.5 cm

This is an old length of hand spun, hand woven, katazome dyed cotton with a marvelously complex pattern.

The small, smudged, undyed area on the edge of the cloth on the last photo is where some kind of description of the cloth would have been written--and this shows that this piece was the end of the bolt. A paper tag, perhaps original to the piece, is still intact.

The pattern is a playful one of what appears to be rounded, stylized snowflakes which contain both cherry blossoms and paulownia blooms. The background is filled with wandering karakusa or arabesques that are punctuated with undyed, stylized chrysanthemums.

This length is of a particularly good age and the inclusion of the ochre-toned details to the otherwise indigo dyed length adds richness and visual appeal.

Recommended.