A Richly Colored Mended Sakabukuro: Kaki Shibu
mid twentieth century
31" x 10 3/4", 78.75 cm x 27.5 cm
Sakabukuro, or sake straining bags, are beautiful 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 bag with its rich, chestnut color, its leathery finish and its wonderful mending makes it a particularly good example of a sakabukuro--note the tear to the proper back of the bag. Please have a good look at the detail photos which accompany this posting.
A really wonderful sakabukuro.
Recommended.