A Gorgeous Tsutsugaki Boro Panel: Auspicious Noshi and a Flying Crane

ca. late nineteenth century
58" x 13", 147 cm x 33 cm

This dark beauty is a panel from a very patched and mended indigo dyed boro futon cover--the futon cover itself was refashioned from a previously made tsutsugaki textile, most likely a yogi or sleeping kimono.

This boro length is very patched and layered, and the indigo is dark blue overall.

On this cloth we see a fragment of a beautifully rendered hand paste resisted crane which has been further stencil dyed with a bit of red dye, probably benibana or safflower.  

The crane is beautifully drawn and resisted and we can see its face, wings and long legs.  Below the crane there is auspicious noshi, a celebratory design based on dried abalone: noshi is dried abalone that is stretched into long, ribbon like strips.  The word noshi is a homonyn for the word “prolong,” so it became customary to include noshi with a gift as a symbol of longevity and prolonged happiness, so noshi is often used for wedding textiles, which this boro piece once was.

This is a wonderful boro textile, rich in layers, color, history, age and beauty.

A fantastic, old boro fragment.