The House of Tsujikura
The House of Tsujikura
Kyoto — Est. 1690s
Tsujikura is Japan's oldest wagasa atelier — and one of the last.
17 generations.
One craft.
According to Tsujikura's own records, the family's ancestors served as retainers to Asai Nagamasa, a feudal lord of the Sengoku period. Defeated in battle against Oda Nobunaga, they retreated to Yamashina on the outskirts of Kyoto, where they settled and put down roots.
In 1690s — the third year of the Genroku era — a descendant named Jinsuke made his way from Yamashina into the city of Kyoto. He established a workshop near Kennin-ji temple, trading under the shop name Yamashiroya, and began making and selling wagasa.
In the early Meiji period, the workshop moved to its present location, where the craft continued without interruption.
From the late Meiji period through the early Taisho era, the 13th generation owner, Tatsuo (Shigekazu), expanded the workshop to include the production and sale of chochin lanterns. Finished wagasa were loaded onto wooden carts and sold across the region — east to Yase and Ohara, west toward Mount Atago, and as far as Otsu in Shiga Prefecture.
This history was passed down through oral account from Sato, the wife of the 13th generation owner, and is preserved in Tsujikura's records.
The Archive
A history in images.
These photographs are from Tsujikura's own archive. They show the atelier as it was — and, in its essentials, as it remains.
The Generations
From Yamashiroya
to the present day.
Tsujikura's records document each generation in an unbroken line from 1690 to the present.
| 1st – 9th generation | Yamashiroya Jinsuke (successive generations under the same name) Wagasa production and sales established in Kyoto, 1690 |
| 10th generation | Tsujikura Kohichi |
| 11th generation | Tsujikura Yoshitaro |
| 12th generation | Tsujikura Kozo |
| 13th generation | Tsujikura Tatsuo (Shigekazu) From the early Taisho period, expanded to include chochin lantern production alongside wagasa |
| 14th generation | Tsujikura Soji |
| 15th generation | Tsujikura Junji |
| 16th generation | Tsujikura Jun |
| 17th generation | Current owner — the craft continues |
The Workshop
A commitment that has
never wavered.
Bamboo. Washi. Natural oil.
The materials have not changed because no better materials have been found. The process involves more than 100 individual steps, each performed by hand, each sensitive to humidity and temperature and the particular quality of the artisan's attention that day.
In the 1950s, the mass adoption of Western-style umbrellas devastated the wagasa industry. The number of artisan trained in hand-papermaking and bamboo splitting declined rapidly. The supply of traditional natural materials became difficult to maintain. Many workshops closed.
Tsujikura did not close. They did not simplify the process. They did not substitute materials.
They continued — because they understood that what they were making was not a product that could be approximated. It was either made correctly, or it was not made at all.
In Their Own Words
The 17th generation.
