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Tansu Chests
Here at Old Japan we have a special selection
of very good quality, antique Japanese Tansu.
Because our store is small we carry only the best
and the most beautiful Tansu, in good condition,
and full of patina.
The Japanese Tansu we carry range
in age from 70 to 125 years old. We carry Paulownia Stacking
Chests, Sendai-Tansu, Nihonmatsu, and Yonezawa Tansu, all of
which were originally used to store clothing in. We also carry
an array of small Tansu chests used as Sewing Boxes, Calligraphy
Boxes and Utility Chests. These can be viewed directly by visiting
our store Old Japan, on Church Street in Lenox, MA.
 Three Piece Stacking Paulownia Tansu c.1930
This style chest dates from the 1920's and
1930's, and was used to store good quality silk
kimonos.
Paulownia is a wood that was introduced into
Japan via China and Korea. The Japanese soon
learned to prize it for its pale color, beautiful
grain and superb luster. The qualities of the
wood made it structurally very strong, with little
warping despite the fact that Paulownia is almost
as light as balsa wood. Furthermore, although
Paulownia wood burns, it has a unique
refractoriness; even if the surface is carbonized
in a fire, it will hold its shape without falling
apart. Some important documents have been known to
survive fires exactly because they were stored in
Paulownia boxes. For all these reasons Paulownia
chests were highly desirable to house important
documents, scrolls, or silk kimonos.
Paulownia chests had another quality that
helped protect expensive silk kimonos. Japan's
month long rainy season is famous for producing
mildew and mold on everything, and the unique
structure of Paulownia wood helps to minimizes
that. In a humid Japanese summer the Paulownia
actually absorbs moisture which causes the wood
to expand, forming an effective seal against more
humidity and mildew, thus protecting the silk
kimonos which are inside. During a dry winter, the
wood contracts, allowing more air to pass through
the chest, which effectively helps to air out the
kimonos.
Because Paulownia was an expensive wood, each
chest was usually custom ordered. Depending on how
much money a family had to spend, they could order
a chest made with as much or as little Paulownia
as they wanted, using Pine or Japanese Cedar to
supplement the Paulownia. Tansu that were made of
100% Paulownia were the most expensive available,
and even then there were degrees of expense. You
could order the wood to be cut very thinly, and
save a bit of money, or you could order the best
quality Paulownia, cut as thick as possible. If
you wanted to spare no expense you could get a
Paulownia Wood chest of drawers that were cut
almost an inch in thickness. With the wood cut
that thick the drawers could be resurfaced and
planed (to remove soiling) a minimum of three
times during the life of the chest. Thus, a
Paulownia Wood Kimono Chest could be expected to
last as long as a century.
Because Paulownia is a very light wood and
dents easily, it needs to be used carefully, or
"reverently", as the Japanese do. We also suggest
that if you commit to owning a Paulownia chest,
and if you live in an area of cold winters and
strong central heating. you should also commit to
using a humidifier in the same room as the chest,
to prevent shrinkage and cracking of the wood.
This is actually a good idea with any wood, or
bamboo, or lacquer antique, but particularly so
with Paulownia
 Two Piece Stacking Yonezawa Tansu c. 1890
Sendai, Yonezawa, and Nihonmatsu Tansu are all hard-wood, mahogany color chests
with a clear lacquer finish, that are 100 to 125
years old. The names of each individual Tansu
represent place names, and each is representative
of a particular kind of elaborate, decorative iron
hardware. Sometimes these chests divide up into
two pieces (to make them easier to carry out of
the house in a fire), while others are simply one
large chest with four large drawers, and a few
smaller drawers. Often these chests have small
compartments that lock, and some of these even
have a secret drawer in the back.
Sendai Tansu often have the most elaborate
iron hardware lock plates stretching out across
the front of each drawer. Yonezawa Tansu have a
simpler, circular iron lock plate, and Nihonmatsu
have squarish lock plates that often have
elaborate configurations of cranes and turtles for
good luck.
"That which functions well, looks well."
- Bruno Taut, German Architect, 1930's
Our friend Ms. Noriko Miyamoto has a store in Sag Harbor and
carries many Tansu also. Please visit her when you go
to Sag Harbor. Link
to Noriko's page.
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