A Heavily Mended Hemp Stitched Sakabukuro: Sake Filter
ca. early to mid twentieth century
28" x 9 1/4", 71 cm x 23.5 cm
Sakabukuro, or sake straining bags, are very collectible boro textiles. Made of cotton saturated with green persimmon tannin, or kaki shibu, which gives the distinctive brown color, 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 mendings and we see the wonderfully odd stitches applied for
this purpose.
This wonderful bag shows dense areas of mending stitches--this particular sakabukuro is desirable not only because it has so much stitching but also because the mending thread is of hemp: fantastic!
A really wonderful sakabukuro, and one of a high quality and attractiveness that is becoming more and more difficult to find.