Ōshima-tsumugi

Ōshima-tsumugi is a traditional craft textile produced in the Amami Islands (mainly Amami Ōshima) in southern Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. It is a hand woven plain-weave silk cloth from hand-spun silk yarns dyed in mud. The textile is most commonly used for making kimonos. Oshima-tsumugi kimonos are often simply called Ōshima.

Outline

Ōshima-tsumugi is considered one of the three finest textiles in the world, along with Gobelins weaving in France, and Persian carpets in Iran. Ōshima-tsumugi has a long history of about 1,300 years.

Ōshima-tsumugi is known for being supple, lightweight, and wrinkle-resistant. Oshima tsumugi kimono are also traditionally dyed using mud. Due to its hardwearing nature, it is often said that up to three generations can wear the same kimono. Ōshima-tsumugi kimono are hugely valued for their beautiful kasuri patterns and uniquely blackish brown color. They are known as one of the most expensive silk fabrics in Japan. The cheapest piece costs about 300,000 yen per bolt, or tanmono, and the highest quality costs several million yen.

In addition to Amami Oshima Island, the fabric is produced in Kagoshima City, Miyakonojo City, and various other areas. In Amami Oshima there is a "Honba Amami-Oshima Tsumugi Textile Cooperative Association" and Oshima tsumugi made in Amami Oshima according to certain rules are given the certification mark "Honba Amami-Oshima Tsumugi". Bolts of fabric sold with this certification mark are of high value. Today, the colors and patterns are becoming more and more diverse, including "colored Oshima" and "white Oshima. Though Ōshima-tsumugi is mainly used for making kimono, small items such as coasters, neckties, and purses are also popular. Unfortunately, there are fewer and fewer craftspeople creating Ōshima-tsumugi on the island, and the textile is facing extinction.

Production areas

Ōshima-tsumugi is produced in two areas: the Amami production area on Amami Oshima Island in Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Kagoshima production area around Kagoshima City. Honba Ōshima-tsumugi was developed in Amami Oshima, and it is said that this technique was introduced to the Kagoshima mainland in 1874. There are two Honba Oshiman Tsumugi unions, one in Amami and the other in Kagoshima City, and a certificate with a globe seal and a flag seal is attached as a proof of Honba Oshiman Tsumugi.

In 2006, Amami City was merged with Nase City, Kasari Town, and Sumiyoshi Village, which had been the central city of the Amami region, to form Amami City. It is located in the central to northern part of Amami Oshima Island and occupies about 40% of the island's total area. The diverse natural environment and biodiversity, including vast mangrove forests, are recognized worldwide, and on July 26, 2021, it was decided to register Amami Oshima, Tokunoshima, Northern Okinawa Island, and Iriomotejima as a World Natural Heritage site. There are many tangible and intangible cultural assets, including traditional island culture such as the island songs and August dances that have been passed down from generation to generation, and historic sites and buildings that have been preserved in each region, of which Oshima silk is one. In Amami City, there are "Amami Oshima Tsumugi Village, Oshima Tsumugi Factory Tourist Garden" and "Yumeori no Sato" as facilities where visitors can observe the entire production process of genuine Oshima Tsumugi and experience mud dyeing and other various activities.

Kagoshima City is located in the central part of Kagoshima Prefecture. It is the capital of Kagoshima Prefecture and is designated as a central city. Factories and other facilities were established when the authentic Oshima silk was introduced to the mainland, and Oshima silk gradually developed. During the war, production in Kagoshima was halted, but later, Amami people who were evacuated to Kagoshima during the war joined in and production resumed as Honba Oshima tsumugi (Oshima tsumugi), which is still produced mainly in Kagoshima City. In Kagoshima City, there is "Ose Shoten" which sells and rents Oshima tsumugi products and offers industrial tours and cultural experiences, and "Amami no Sato" where visitors can learn about the history of authentic Oshima tsumugi, the production process, and the Oshima tsumugi museum.

History

The origin of Oshima Tsumugi is unclear, though it has been reported that this ancient tecnique 1,300 goes back at least 1,300 years. Techigi, a tree native to amami, and many more trees and plants have been used to dye cloth, and is believed to be the origin of oshima tsumugis current production process comes from thsi.

The history of the important process of mud dyeing is long and is described in a book in the Shosoin Repository. Several theories have been handed down as to its origin. In the early days, Oshima tsumugi was woven by hand on a traditional Japanese silk machine and worn by the islanders for their own use.

According to the document record that leads to today's Oshima tsumugi, in 1720, the Satsuma clan prohibited the wearing of tsumugi except for island officials ("Kuchijo Kakaku", Matsuoka family document). It is therefore believed that the production of tsumugi had been in existence prior to 1720, and together with brown sugar, it was an important source of financial resources for the clan. A record from the end of the Edo period, "Minamishima Zanwa" ("Zakka of Minamishima"), states that "the weaving is dull, but it has long since become shiny and is very good, and the stripes are various. Oshima tsumugi was exhibited at the 3rd National Industrial Exhibition held in April 1890, where it was highly evaluated, and continued to be exhibited at various product fairs and exhibitions, The fame of Oshima pongee increased.

In 1901, Kagoshima Oshima Tsumugi Industrial Association was established in Nase City with 3,000 members for the purpose of unification of traders, progress and development, prevention of inferior products and quality improvement through product inspection. This was the predecessor of the present Honjo Amami Oshima Tsumugi Cooperative. In the beginning, inspections were not thorough due to the strict inspection regulations and the low organization rate of the cooperative. However, in 1904, when the textile consumption tax was newly established, the tax office required an assessment of the tax amount after the inspection of products by the cooperative, which forced them to join the cooperative. At the same time, father and son Ieon Nagae and Tohachi Nagae established elaborate kasuri processing using a shime machine, and technological progress was made. Oshima silk could not be called pongee until around the beginning of the Meiji period, and nowadays it can no longer be called pongee due to the use of twisted yarn. The name for this fabric is "Oshima Kasuri. The only difference is that the paste used for making silk is wheat flour in Yuki silk and seaweed in Oshima silk

Production

Oshima Tsumugi kimono are produced in a lengthy process with over 30 steps.

Shimebata

The shimebatais the technique used to make the kasuri threads. The white silk threads are tightly woven with cotton threads creating a dense mat. Areas of the silk threads are exposed according to the design.

Dyeing

There are two main dyeing processes, one using a dye from the bark of the Techigi tree, and the other, mud. The Techigi tree is cut into chips, and boiled down to a thick red liquid. The silk and cotton mats are first dyed in this dye turning them pink, and are then dyed repeatedly in the mud. The fabric goes from a light grey, to a reddish brown, and finally to a rich, warm black. The tannin in the dye of the Techigi tree and the iron in the iron rich mud reacts to create this black color, unique to Oshima Tsumugi.

Somestimes when there is not enough iron in the mud, it does not dye well. When the happens, leaves from the sotetsu tree and put in the mud strengthening the chemical effect of the dye.

Weaving

Hataori is a general term for fabrics woven in plain weave. The warp and weft threads are woven one by one. the black Honjo Amami Oshima silk is woven in order to dye each thread with dots that will become part of the pattern, and the dotted threads are then woven to make the fabric into a warp while matching the pattern.

Patterns

Many patterns can be constructed with kasuri to create oshima tsumugi. Many traditional patterns are named after village names.

• Tatsugo:

The name “Tatsugou” is derived from Tatsugou village where is one of the biggest weaving region of Oshima tsumugi. The pattern often features the a pattern that depicts the skin of the poisonous Habu snake, and the zig zagged leaves of the Sotetsu plant.

• Akinabara: Named after the village of Akina. Bara comes from Sabara which means basket or sieve.
• Arima
• Saigo

See also

• Kimono
• Plain weave
• Twill
• Tanaka Isson

External links

• Oshima Tsumugi via The Cultural Foundation For Promoting the National Costume of Japan
• 本場奄美大島紬協同組合
• 本場大島紬の里（奄美の里）（都喜ヱ門大島紬美術館）
• 大島紬の歴史を辿る（銀座もとじ 大島紬）