Kimono

The fabric of this kimono was probably woven in Echigo (present day Niigata), a mountainous area in north-west Japan famous for cloth such as this. The pattern was created with a technique known as 'kasuri', which involves the binding of certain sections of yarn prior to dyeing. When the skein is dipped in the dye bath the colour does not penetrate the bound areas, creating a yarn that is partly white and partly coloured. A pattern, here of chrysanthemums and hatched lines, then emerges as the cloth is woven. The woman who wore this kimono may have lived in Echigo. However, it is equally likely that she lived in Edo, Kyoto, Osaka or some other city, for kasuri kimono were very fashionable among urban women in the 19th century.