MAGE WAPPA BOXES
Akita Prefecture (since eighth century)
Materials: Akita cedar, cherry bark (joints)
These lunch boxes are fine examples of Japan’s woodworking tradition. Akita cedars that are over 200 years old are sliced into seamless sheets; they are processed and shaped into boxes with curved angles and spliced together with the bark of the cherry tree. Mage wappa is an everyday item that makes use of the qualities of natural materials. The unvarnished surface of natural cedar absorbs moisture, so food items remain fresh and delicious, even after they cool. Food also keeps better, as cedar keeps away bacteria. In the past, men who worked in the forest carried their lunches in mage-wappa boxes, drawing water from a stream with the lid and heating it with stones from a fire. The pattern formed by the cherry bark served as a “signature” of the person who made the box.
曲げわっぱ
秋田県 700年代 奈良時代
素材：秋田杉 （留めの部分：桜の皮）
日本が誇る木工芸の一つ。樹齢200年以上の秋田杉を継ぎ目の一切ない一枚板にし、曲げ加工によって形を整え、最後に桜の皮で留めたもの。天然杉の白木の木肌がご飯などの水分を吸って、冷めてもなおご飯が美味しく、木の持つ殺菌作用で食べ物が長続きするという自然素材の恵みをいかした暮らしの道具です。昔、山仕事をする男たちは、この曲げわっぱの弁当を持ち歩き、弁当の蓋で小川の水を汲み、焚き火の焼け石を入れてお湯を沸かして飲みました。桜皮の止め方はそれぞれに異なり、当時名前の代わりにもなりました。
