A Tattered Length of Indigo Dyed Boro Cloth: Patched Layers

late nineteenth, early twentieth century
40 1/2" x 13", 103 cm x 33 cm

This wonderfully tattered gem of a boro cloth seems to be taken from a han juban or a half under kimono--or perhaps it was taken from a short work coat.  In any case, by the notch to the left hand side of the length we can tell that this piece was taken from a garment.

The pile-up of patching and the wonderfully hand spun quality of the indigo dyed cotton makes this small piece an exemplary boro treasure.  The varied tones of blue and the subtlety of the figured cloth in relation to the base cloth is exactly what you would want to see in a good quality, old boro cloth.

Even though this one is small and tattered, it holds all the qualities of richness and age that make boro cloth so interesting to us.

Wonderful.