A Length of Indigo Dyed Katazome: Genji-guruma
33 1/4" x 14", 84.5 cm x 35.5 cm
This is a length of indigo dyed cotton that has been dyed in the katazome or stencil resist dyed method.
It shows an interesting repeat pattern of "brushy" circular images in the form of an ox cart wheel.
Ox cart wheels are an ancient symbol often referred to as Genji-guruma, an allusion to the famous Heian period novel, "The Tale of Genji." The ox cart played a role in this story of courtly life which is full of intimately rich details of the lives of the Japanese aristocracy some 8 centuries ago.
The images of ox cart wheels themselves are not resisted perfectly and you can see some blurred "skidding" around the edges of each image.
Still, this is an unusual pattern and an interesting one. The cotton seems hand spun and the cloth also seems hand woven.
The indigo is slightly faded and the pattern is not often seen.
Lovely.
