Archival photograph of the root of the hibiscus plant (Tororoaoi in Japanese) used to produce the dispersant used in Japanese papermaking. The root has been beaten, which produces a slimy substance that helps suspends and disperse the fibers in the papermakers vat, circa 1990s
Funding
Endangered Material Knowledge Programme
History
Session
A02
Rights owner
Daphne Mohajer va Pesaran
Cultural group
Japanese
Country
Japan
Place
Shiroishi, Miyagi
Item/object
Dispersant
Techniques of production
beaten
Materials alt
Hibiscus (Abelmoschus manihot) Root
Cultural context/event
Farming
Location
Field
Temporality
photo taken circa 1990s, harvest and material processing normally takes place in winter time around January. Papermaking was traditionally winter work for farmers who couldn’t grow crops in the wintertime