Cloth: wool felt; shibori (tie-dyeing)expand_more
The John R. Van Derlip Fund and the Mary Griggs Burke Endowment Fund established by the Mary Livingston Griggs and Mary Griggs Burke Foundation; purchase from the Thomas Murray Collectionexpand_more 2019.20.128
Material and technique: Felted wool and tie-dye (shibori)
Most wool felt was made in China or Mongolia and then exported to Japan. This felt rug (mōsen) features large and small roundels in white, augmented with red dye. It is unknown whether the shibori (tie-dye) dye work was done before it reached Japan, but its fineness and saturation suggest a Japanese sensibility. Because of its relatively small size, it was likely used as a mat (chagujoku) for ritualistic serving of sencha, a loose-leaf green tea.
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