Ko-bukusa Cloth (Tea-things) (Manreki Hachiryo Shokkokin)

The name of "Shokko Nishiki" (Red Shu Brocade) originated from a gorgeous red brocade woven at a mill in Chengtu, capital of Shu, in the age of the Three-Kingdoms (300 A.D.) in ancient China. The peculiar bisymmetrical and geometrical pattern had been handed down by weavers through the Tang, Sung, Yuan and Ming dynasties. The inherited tradition bore many fine pieces of the Red Shu Brocade. This cloth follows the pattern of the Red Shu Brocade woven during the Wanli period under the Ming dynasty. Its systematic design of 8-petal Chinese flowers skillfully arranged in an alternate manner inside the over-lapped octagons well deserves our admiration.