Nishijin textiles in use

Nishijin-ori: many textiles within one weaving district

Nishijin-ori names Kyoto’s regional tradition of patterned textiles, particularly in silk. Dyed yarns are arranged into woven designs, using several techniques rather than one standard weave or motif.

Kimono: a garment built from straight pieces

A kimono is a wrap-front Japanese robe worn with an obi sash. Its familiar form developed from the kosode, with changes in cut, fabric, decoration and accessories.

Obi: the sash, its construction and the finished knot

Machiya: a house connected to the street’s trade

Machiya are traditional urban houses, many combining a shop or workplace with domestic rooms. Kyoto’s long timber houses are one regional tradition within a wider range of Japanese town houses.

Fukuro obi: construction before the knot

A fukuro obi is a broad sash used with women’s kimono. Its name refers to a tube-like construction, rather than a pocket. It may be woven as a tube or made by joining separately woven face and backing fabrics.

Uchikake: an outer robe over a belted kimono

An uchikake is worn over an inner garment already secured with an obi. The outer robe hangs without a belt around it. Bridal use is familiar today, but does not explain its entire history.

Kasuri: a pattern begins in the yarn

Silk-thread embroidery: lines and filled surfaces

Silk-thread embroidery uses a needle to add lines, filled areas or relief to an existing textile. The ground may already be patterned. A garment and its close-up show how woven design and added stitching work together.

Cultural-property protection: read the exact label

Japan protects several kinds of cultural property, including tangible and intangible heritage, folk traditions, monuments, landscapes and groups of buildings. Designation, registration and selection are distinct mechanisms, not interchangeable awards.

The Ōnin War: Rival Armies Occupy Kyoto

In 1467, rival alliances led by Hosokawa Katsumoto and Yamana Sōzen turned disputes within the Ashikaga government into war in Kyoto; fighting continued until the main western armies withdrew in 1477.