This sashiko stitched noragi is a work coat that is as subtle as it is beautiful.   Sewn from repurposed indigo dyed cotton, the entire coat is pierced with horizontal rows of stitching, too numerous to count.The beauty of this soulful coat is enhanced by a remarkable feature: small, white-on-blue stitched gussets, one under each sleeve, perfectly placed, with the white color doled out in just the right amount.  Kind of perfect, aren’t they?Have another look at this wonderful feature, below.And in considering these stitched gussets, let’s not overlook the beautiful tone-on-tone fabric collage that is the back of this jacket.   Just extraordinary.The coat dates to the first half of the twentieth century and its condition is fine–it is still very wearable and durable, as many of these old coats are.

What a beautiful coat: this is a sakiori hanten, a work coat that is woven from a white cotton warp which is fed by weft yarns of shredded, recycled indigo dyed cotton.   The sashiko stitched sleeves seem to be sewn from a recycled sashiko furoshiki; the reinforcement on the neck area is meant to guard against wear, presumably from the strap of a burden basket.

The weaving of the body of the coat is tight and regular; a sakiori garment woven from indigo dyed weft is desirable. The sashiko stitching on the neck reinforcement is just wonderful: the tight stitching gives added strength that area of the coat, and zigzag pattern is the traditional yabane or arrow feather motif.The interlocking circle motif, again, beautifully stitched on the sleeves, is a traditional Japanese motif which is borrowed from the Chinese.  In Japan it is called shippo tsunagi and it is a representation of the “seven Buddhist jewels” mentioned in Buddhist sutras: agate, amber, coral, gold, lapis lazuli, pearl and silver.I find this coat to be phenomenally handsome.  It’s very lightly used and most likely it dates to the mid-twentieth century.  Traditional work coats were still being hand woven and hand sewn well into the twentieth century in rural Japan.