About Kinma
蒟醤は昔東南アジアから伝わったとされる技法です。東南アジアの一部で蒟醤（くしょう）の葉に檳榔樹（びんろうじゅ）の実と香料などを巻いてかむ習慣をキンマークといい、その漆器の入れ物が日本にもたらされ、蒟醤（きんま）と呼ばれるようになったといわれています。
| What is Kinma? |
There are three major ways of carving patterns: carving with lines, carving with dots, and a combination of these two. A special carving knife called kinmaken is used for kinma carving.
Originally, only the method of carving with lines existed, but by combining various colored urushi and carving techniques, it became possible to express complex patterns. After applying colored urushi several times to the carved area, the surface is polished flat, leaving a different color on the carved pattern section.
Kinma is a technique said to have been passed down from Southeast Asia in ancient times. In some parts of Southeast Asia, there is a custom called betel chewing, where betel nuts, betel leaves, and fragrances are wrapped in kushō leaves. The urushi containers for this practice were brought to Japan, and they came to be called kinma here.
| Making Process of Kinma |
① Carve the pattern
② Apply colored urushi to the carved area
③ Polish the urushi part with charcoal
④ Polish with deer horn powder to finish
＜Source: "What is Traditional Kōgei?" Edited by Japan Kōgei Association East Japan Branch / Published by Unsodo, P.35>
