Edo Fine Cabinetmaking

With four distinctive seasons, Japan is blessed with a wide variety of trees and forest types. For this reason, wood has been the primary material used for architecture and furnishings since ancient times. Woodwork can be roughly divided into seven different types: sashimono (fine cabinetmaking, or joinery), kurimono (hollowed-out forms), horimono (carving), magemono (bentwork), tagamono (cooperage—slats set around a base and held in place by a ring, such as in a barrel), and amimono (interwoven wood strips). Among these, sashimono is a complex technique based on intricate joinery (tsunagi) and tenons and mortises (hozo). The history goes back to the ancient court culture of the Heian period (794–1185). Woodworking crafts in Edo advanced during the Edo period (1615–1868), when skilled artisans were called to the Edo metropolis from all parts of the country. Eventually, with increasingly stable living conditions, the demands for furniture increased. Sashimono carpenters of Edo made many types of home furnishings, honing their techniques and catering to the tastes of the samurai, merchants, and kabuki actors (nashizono sashimono). 

A variety of wood types are used to make Edo sashimono, including mulberry, amur cork tree, zelkova, Japanese cypress (hinoki), cedar, paulownia, ash, and hovenia.  Since the Edo period, pieces made of mulberry taken from islands around Tokyo, Mikurajima and Miyakejima, were prized for the outstanding beauty of their wood grain. Working them, however, required such great skill in handling that the craftsmen specializing in this art were called "Kuwamonoshi” (mulberry joinery masters) out of respect. For this chest, a thick island mulberry was sliced into four thin boards to create sliding doors of exquisite beauty.

Originally Edo sashimono mirror stands were made primarily for kabuki actors;  later they spread among the commoners as luxury goods. Small sized mirror stands are still popular today. The mirror on such a stand can be lifted up when needed; when not in use, it is folded down with its wickerwork backside serving as a top lid. 

The timber is cut so its dimensions match the furniture to be produced with a focus on bringing out the brilliance of the wood grain. This process of cutting up the tree into blocks has a significant effect on the finished product. Then it is given an even thickness using line-marking gauges (kebiki), rulers, and planes.

Once each part of the chest has been given all the necessary matching joins, the chest is temporarily assembled. After fine-tuning the joints to assure that they engage well, the chest is re-assembled. If necessary a mallet is used to assemble the joints precisely. 

To finish the chest, repeated layers of natural lacquer are painted on, wiped away, and then dried; this is called “fukiurushi”. Depending the product, it may be coated in urethane or other types of finish, or even remain uncoated. The coating is usually outsourced. The handles and metal fittings are ready‐made or made by a chaser or a metal smith and customized to match the product.