Mino Ware Mino Ware boasts of no less than 1300 years of history. It has developed into free original shapes from the earliest basic round shape. There are many types of Mino Ware, including the Shino and Oribe styles which are famous for their use in the Japanese Tea Ceremony. The Shino style is known for its almost pure white glaze, while the Oribe style is characterized by its greens. Sarubobo 'Sarubobo' the standard Hida souvenir is a charm for household harmony and protection from the plague and takes its name from the fact it resembles a baby monkey. 'Bobo' is the word for baby in the Hida district dialect. Hida-shunkei-nuri It is called beginning of Shunkei-nuri when a carpenter struck the heart of the beautiful wood grain and made the elegant golden color tray using transparent lacquer about 400 years ago. The traditional technique, characteristic of this lacquer ware, is a transparent lacquer coating which takes advantage of the natural grain of a tree. Seki Cutlery Seki is to Japan what Solingen is to Europe. More than 800 years ago, sword-makers in the Kamakura period discovered Seki, where they found soil good for tempering steel as well as water suited to their art. Among them was “Magoroku of Seki” renowned for swords that “don’t break or bend, and cut well.” His skill and beliefs have been passed along for generations, helping to raise Seki’s worldwide reputation as the maker of first-rate cutlery. Mino Paper Hand-made Mino paper is made with a unique method in which a screened frame is shaken back and forth as well as left and right, which results in a thin but sturdy product with an even surface. Mino paper, known for its superior quality, is widely used to line the sliding doors in elegant Japanese homes, softening the sunlight coming into the house. Because it retains its original color and strength for hundreds of years, there are uses for which only Mino paper would do.

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