Institute for Biodiversity Science and Sustainability

CAS Anthropology Collections Database


Catalog Number

CAS 2006-0002-0009   CAS 2006-0002-0009; Belt
Category Accessories/Ornaments; Textiles
Object Name Belt
Culture Japanese
Global Region East Asia
Country Japan
State/Prov./Dist. Okinawa Prefecture
County
Other Geographic Data Taketomi Island
Maker's Name Unknown
Date of Manufacture ca. 1970s
Collection Name N/A
Materials Cotton; Indigo
Description Narrow indigo-dyed belt woven in a warp-faced technique with an ikat pattern of alternating four and five white rectangles on an indigo blue background; Traditionally these belts were woven by young girls for their fiancés when they became engaged; In the Okinawan dialect, the words “four and five” can be pronounced as “itunuyu” which also translates as “forever” or “eternally”, and thus the pattern reflects the young girl’s sentiments.
Dimensions (cm) Width = 5.2, Thickness = 0.1, Length = 128.0