Jan 24, 2008

Urushi


Urushi teacup saucer



What is urushi?

Urushi is the sap of the urushi tree.
Their habitat is China, Korea, Japan and the eastern
Himalayas area.
The sap of the tree contains a resin.
The resin is processed to urushi.
The urushi is very hard and durable.
It has been used for coating woods for a long time ago by Asians.

Evidence was found that Asians used urushi in the Stone Age.
They used it for spears and arrows.
In early Japan, people recognized urushi’s durability and the beauty,
and began to use it for coating for wooden tableware, boxes and combs.
The skill of making urushi ware has been passed on from generations
to generations, as has been done with tea ceremony custom.
Patrons of tea ceremony loved urushi ware and let craftmen make
luxurious tea ware boxes, tea spoons, tea caddies (Matsume)
and other items around the Edo period (1600-1850).
That is the reason there are many high quality urushi ware now.


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