Three and a half years after the project began, hemp cloth comparable to that of the Edo period was born.
With the introduction of machine spinning after the Meiji period, hemp cloth, which was not suitable for machine spinning, was pushed out of the market. Furthermore, the Cannabis Control Act, enacted under the direction of GHQ after World War II, required a license for hemp production and distribution, causing a sharp decline in domestic production. Naturally, hemp cloth disappeared from the market.
While researching antique hemp cloth, Shinichiro Yoshida, director of the Early Modern Linen Research Institute, said, "It dries quickly and has excellent heat retention. It is strong yet soft. The more I researched it, the more I saw the benefits of hemp cloth. And I began to wonder, why don't we make something out of such a wonderful material?" Yoshida's question, "Why don't we make something out of this material?", reached Yamaguchi Genbei, the 10th generation head of Kyoto obi craftsman Hondaya, and Avex, leading to the launch of the dream project to "revive hemp cloth."

To make this dream a reality, Avex Group Holdings' Asayotei Project Leader, Ryuji Yamazaki, was involved in everything from hemp cloth production to distribution management. "When I first touched Yoshida's bleached hemp cloth from the Edo period, I was amazed at how soft it was. "Turning dreams and feelings into reality using a single piece of hemp cloth was extremely challenging, but also very rewarding," says Yamazaki.

Because there are few hemp spinning factories, producing soft hemp thread was a new experience for the spinning factory. Yamazaki and the factory staff held numerous meetings and approached the hemp thread using techniques that are not typically used for spinning. "Yoshida and Yamaguchi carefully examined the prototypes woven with hemp thread. We compiled points that needed improvement and sent a request to the factory again. We made prototypes, readjusted them, and repeated this process over and over again," says Yamazaki. Three and a half years after the project began, a fabric comparable to the hemp cloth of the Edo period was finally completed.

The revived hemp cloth was named Mayotae. Since the Heian period, "myo" has been a word referring to cloth. It also means something mysteriously wonderful. In recreating hemp cloth, which has had such a close connection to Japanese life, the name was chosen to convey the mysterious nature of the hemp world. Yoshida concluded, "There are many natural fabrics, but hemp cloth is a fabric that is both familiar and special to the Japanese. I want to continue to respect hemp cloth, which has a long history. I hope that by incorporating Mayotae into everyday life, its merits and characteristics will become more widely known to people today."

Return to Part 1.

[Profile] Shinichiro Yoshida
A leading expert in hemp cloth research. He has presented his research on the fibers and threads of ramie and hemp cloth from the Edo period at exhibitions such as the "Nara Sarashi" exhibition at the Nara Prefectural Folk Museum, the "Takamiya-nu" exhibition at the Aisho Town Museum of History and Culture in Shiga Prefecture and the Higashiomi City Notogawa Museum, and the "Yonotamanu" exhibition at the Tokamachi Museum in Niigata Prefecture. He is a co-author of "Bessatsu Taiyo: Japanese Natural Fabrics" (Heibonsha, 2004).