SHIKISHIMA BON

My name is Hiroki Ikehara, the fifth-generation owner of Ikesho Shikki Lacquerware Shop.

It was in 1877 that the store was set up in Kuroe, the production center of Kishu lacquerware.
Since then, there is a tray that my family have been using for over 100 years.

It is the “Shikishima Bon”.

It is used every day for serving tea to guests and as a plate at the dining table.
This tray is still active as daily necessities.
The lacquer has a nice reddish tinge without any noticeable scratches.
It is so attached and cute.

Although I would love to have another one, new Shikishima Bon are no longer available.
The makers ceased to exist several decades ago.

The thought of not being able to get a new one made me want one even more.
So I thought, let's revive the “Shikishima Bon”.
As a lacquerware shop myself, I made what I wanted.

Please take good care of these handmade trays, which are never the same.

Kuroe-nuri Shikishima Bon

“Kishu lacquerware”, known as one of the three major types of lacquerware in Japan, has been produced mainly in the Kuroe area in the north-west of Kainan City, Wakayama Prefecture, since the Muromachi period.

The "Shikishima Bon" is a tray symbolising kuroe-nuri, which was made in the Taisho era, but has not been handed down to the present day due to the loss of successors.
"Kuroe-nuri Shikishima Bon" is a reprint of this "Shikishima Bon" to the present day.

Simple and profound design that has been loved for a long time

It is lacquered without chemical paints, utilising the grain of the wood, with black on the outside and vermilion on the inside rim, but the contrast with the beautiful grain of the wood is achieved by wiping the central part with Fuki-urushi (a technique of repeatedly applying raw lacquer to the wood and wiping it off with a cloth to bring out the grain of the wood). The lacquer is also applied in layers to increase the robustness of the product.

Tokubetsuna monode wanaku nichijō no fūkei no ichibu ni

Use it as a tea and confectionery tray, as well as for everyday use as a plate or serving dish on which to serve food directly.