Other notes
This is a bit of a wrap-up along with some reference links shared during the workshop
- Part 1: Introduction
- Part 2: Travel and sightseeing
- Part 3: Extracurricular activities
- Part 4: The actual papermaking workshop
A book on tool making
One book available to us during breaks was the a report on traditional Japanese papermaking tools. We had a printed copy to look through, but it is also available as a PDF file through the above link. The PDF file has text in it (rather than just page images) but I’ve been unable to get translations so far, as the PDF file is locked to prevent content copying or even printing. All I can do is take screen shots in the PDF viewer, and translate the screen shots of a page at a time. While at the workshop I was using Google Lens on my phone to get the gist of some of the contents.
The title page reads:
Record of Techniques for Making Handmade Washi Paper Tools
National Handmade Washi Paper Tools Manufacturing Technology Preservation Society
40th Anniversary Commemorative Publication
Two of the introductory pages read:
Chapter 1: A Note on Publication
I. A Greeting on the Publication (Keiko Ihara, Chairperson, National Association for the Preservation of Traditional Handmade Washi Paper Making Techniques)
The National Association for the Preservation of Handmade Washi Paper Tools was designated a nationally selected organization for the preservation of traditional techniques in 1976, and this year marks its 40th anniversary. It is with great joy that all members of the association can publish the “Record of Handmade Washi Paper Tools Production Techniques” to coincide with this momentous occasion.
Our preservation society has so far played a role in the field of handmade Japanese paper by creating tools, but as we commemorate our 40th anniversary, we would like to make even greater efforts to contribute to the preservation and development of handmade Japanese paper, a traditional craft.
Handmade washi paper from all over Japan embodies the wisdom and spirit of people’s lives in the past, and the fundamental techniques behind it are important skills that are still relevant today.
However, today, the techniques of handmade Japanese paper are being forced to change with the times, and in many cases, their continuation is at risk due to a lack of successors.
In light of these realities, we sincerely hope that the precious local handmade washi paper will be preserved and passed down to future generations. Therefore, the members of this preservation society will dedicate themselves to refining their respective tool-making techniques and training successors.
Our preservation society publishes an annual journal, “Bamboo, Wood, Thread, and the Immersion of Bamboo Baskets” (the cover of the inaugural issue is shown on the next page), which records the status of technical exchanges and skill transfer activities at training sessions, as well as the training of successors. Including these contents, we have created a technical record book that also includes valuable photographs and technical records from our predecessors, as well as the “Field Survey Report” by Professor Yanagibashi, who made significant contributions to the establishment of our preservation society.
Although this is a very modest commemorative publication, we hope that it will be of some small help in the future inheritance and development of handmade Japanese paper and the tools that support it, and we pray that the history of handmade Japanese paper and tool making in each region will be preserved and passed down for generations to come.
Lastly, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all those involved who provided various forms of cooperation in the publication of the “Record of Techniques for Making Handmade Washi Paper Tools.”
II. On the Publication of the Technical Record of the Selected Preservation Technique “Manufacturing of Handmade Washi Paper Tools” (Cultural Properties Department, Agency for Cultural Affairs, Traditional Arts)
(Toyoko Kondo, Chief Cultural Property Investigator, Crafts and Technology Division, Cultural Affairs Section)
I would like to offer my heartfelt congratulations on the publication of the “Record of Handmade Washi Paper Making Techniques” by the National Association for the Preservation of Handmade Washi Paper Making Techniques, the organization that preserves this technique, as it marks the 40th anniversary of the designation of the “Handmade Washi Paper Making Tools” technique as a nationally designated preserved technique.
Selected preservation techniques are those techniques selected by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology under the Cultural Properties Protection Law as “traditional techniques or skills indispensable for the preservation of cultural properties that require preservation measures.” Along with the selection, the holders and preservation organizations (organizations that carry out preservation work) of these techniques are also certified. When this system was established by the amendment of the Cultural Properties Protection Law in 1975, the technique of “making tools for handmade Japanese paper” was selected the following year, 1976, along with 15 other techniques, and was quickly positioned as a technique that should be preserved by the nation. The organization certified as the preservation organization for this technique is the National Association for the Preservation of Handmade Japanese Paper Tool Making Techniques. We express our deepest respect to the members of the Preservation Association for their efforts in refining and improving the techniques for making high-quality tools and training successors, amidst the continuing difficult situation of declining demand for tools due to the decrease in handmade Japanese paper technicians and the difficulty in obtaining high-quality raw materials.
In 2014, “Sekishu Hanshi” and “Hon Mino Shi” were designated as Important Intangible Cultural Properties by the Japanese government (certified by the preserving organization).
Three techniques related to “Hosokawa paper” have been inscribed on the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity under the Convention for the Protection of Intangible Cultural Heritage, as “Washi: Traditional Japanese Handmade Paper Techniques.”
“Perhaps as a result of these efforts, the art of handmade Japanese paper is being re-recognized as a regional traditional culture, and initiatives to establish a foundation for its transmission are being seen in various places. One of the factors that gives Japanese handmade Japanese paper its beauty, folding resistance, and water resistance is the precisely and robustly crafted papermaking tools. We hope that this “Record of Handmade Japanese Paper Tool Manufacturing Techniques” will be used and contribute to the preservation and transmission of handmade Japanese paper tool manufacturing techniques in the future.”
For clarity, the organization was founded in 1976 and this is their 40th year, with the publication coming out in 2016. The document includes historical photos of toolmakers many of whom had passed away before publication.
One somewhat amusing thing I found using Google Lens was part of making brushes for transferring the damp paper from the post to the drying surface. There was a recipe for the glue used to hold the bristles which called for “glue, pine tar, and gold dust”. Neither Paul nor Imai-san knew what this “gold dust” referred to. After much Google searching I’ve concluded that this is a brand name of pastry flour that was available back in the day. Perhaps if we had asked an old Japanese baker they would have instantly known what this was. I found one possibly stale B2B web page listing this product and brand name, describing it as having about 8% protein and made from Canadian wheat. So the term “glue” likely refers to gelatin-based hide glue, and the “gold dust” refers to a starch paste or low-protein wheat paste, and the whole witch’s brew must have been quite a sticky mess. Unfortunately no proportions are given, nor the effects of altering proportions.
Photos of this particular brush-making process show that the glue is made up in advance as hard sticks, which are rubbed onto a hotplate to melt the required amount of glue, with the glue being applied to the bristles by dipping and spreading with a stick or spatula.
Bibliography for conservation
Clara supplied this link to a list of publications which provide specialized vocabulary for various fields one might encounter while doing conservation work.
Supplier links
We also passed around a few links to suppliers of some materials:
Kaki-shibu
Mimasa Yoshishichi Shoten Co., Ltd. is a supplier of kaki-shibu in various forms, both liquid concentrate and powder. Although they sell by mail-order I don’t know if they ship outside of Japan. Their online order forms only support Japanese shipping destinations.
Silk sewing thread
Yuzawaya Shoji Co., Ltd is a general craft supplier which was recommended as a supplier of the silk thread we used to create our wa-toji books. They have several retail locations throughout Japan, and also sell through various online shops.
The thread we were using came on small 20m cards branded KNK, from Kanagawa Co. Ltd., and based on a Google Lens translation, is labeled Oritsuru No. 16 “silk buttonhole thread”. This thread does not appear to be available through Yuzawaya’s “world” shop, but using the company’s own shopping cart system you can find this thread in 145 colours, costing ¥407 (about CAD4.00) for a 20m card. This seems to be a different ordering system than Yuzawaya’s “Online store for everyone living overseas” shopping site, and uses a forwarding service called WorldShopping, so there are additional shipping and handling fees to be considered. Items going to Canada are shipped DDU (duties unpaid) so the courier company used may have their hand out for duties and their own customs processing fees before they’ll give you the parcel.
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