Everyday bags made with consideration
for the canvas sails used in Japan’s harbors

Koraku Matsuemon is known for creating modern canvas in 1785 in Japan. Until then, sails were made with woven grass such as straw and rush, which became heavy and difficult to control when wet with rain and water. Then Koraku Matsuemon, operating as a boat operator in Takasago, successfully created a thick and durable sail using double-woven heavy banshu cotton, which was just becoming popular at the time. Though more expensive than conventional canvas, the Matsuemon-ho name spread through Japan, contributing to the development of the modern fishing industry in Japan. In 2010, the association began producing bags using the Matsuemon-ho canvas. “It is extraordinarily rare that a canvas born over 220 years ago would still remain known, and is now on par with global name brands. Here in Takasago, the home of Matsuemon-ho, I hope to tell people just what great innovators we have in Japan,” says Takasago Product Association CEO Takasato Kakinoki.

The first challenge for the product was recreating the canvas from that period. The thread is exceptionally thick for the present day, with two cotton yearns woven with six weft yarns. It is time consuming work, with each stitch woven at the weaving mill in Takacho using powered looms from the old days. “Matsuemon-ho is at the top of its game, with lasting contributions and improvements made not just in canvas, but in a variety of fields. I hope we can work to tell people about the man who started it all,” says Kakinoki. The over 200-year-old history of Matsuemon-ho connects with the present, allowing one to experience the sense of quality through highly usable items such as the handbags. Each piece is filled with this wonderful concept.