This unique wooden tray with handles merges the two traditional woodworking techniques of Akita Prefecture: magewappa and kabazaiku. The main tray is made from Akita Cedar using the magewappa technique and is accented by a rim of kabazaiku that seamlessly bends up into two elegant handles.

The Ōdate magewappa (曲げわっぱ) technique of bending thin strips of Akita Cedar dates back to the 10th century and was perfected in Ōdate (大館) in Akita. The wood is scraped thin and softened in boiling water before being bent into shape.

The kabazaiku (樺細工, also 桜皮細工) technique of hand-scraping, polishing, and pasting wild cherry bark is unique to Akita Prefecture in northern Japan, where the technique was brought to the town of Kakunodate (角館) in Akita by the Satake family of samurai in the 1700s.

Designed by Hashimoto Yukio (橋本夕紀夫). Made by Tomioka in Daisen, Akita Prefecture.

To clean, wipe with a damp cloth. Avoid washing or soaking the tray as this can weaken the paste that holds the cherry bark to the wood. 

Dimensions:

33.5cm (13.2in) - width
3.5cm (1.4in) - height

Condition: New

This Japanese item ships from the United States.