Japanese Fire-Fighter Jacket

Vintage Japanese fire-fighters' jackets are popular with thrift store fashionistas. They show up on ebay direct from Japan as well as high-end resell shops. This blog will help you find a real one verses a contemporary fake. A fire-fighting outfit is called hikeshi sashiko hanten in Japanese. These outfits consist of several layers which were wetted down to protect the firemen from burns, bruises and flames. These multi-layers also guarded the fireman from falling objects.

The jacket's stitching techniques and design (see close up photo below) are referred to as sashiko. The designers laid several pieces of cotton cloth over one another and stitched them together, perhaps like an Amish kitchen rag rug. Each row of fabric had a rolled up layer of cotton, providing a reinforced cloth that almost had a knotted surface.

Cotton fabric was used because it quickly absorbed water and could be died with indigo. The term hanten implies short garment. These jackets did not have collars that could be down-turned and like a haori, they are traditional Japanese half-length kimono style jackets. As in the case here, the hanten has a brigade mark dyed on the back with the name of the brigade in front using kanji symbols. The back says Ichiban meaning No. 1.

Back of Jacket
Mass Produced Jacket from the early 20th Century
Circa 1910

Ichiban (No. 1) in a Circle
Katazome technique - Stencil Dyeing
Dyed in Red, Black and White

Name of the Fire Brigade in Kanji Charters

Details of the Stitching Techniques and Design
The stenciled fabric was most likely made waterproof by persimmon tannin

References:

Daruma, Japanese Art & Antiques Magazine, Issue 19, Summer 1998, Introduction to Hikeshi Sashiko Hanten by Sunagawa Akira.

Denver Museum of Art, Carley Strauss, Photos and Essay on 1800s Japanese Firemen's Coat, August 20, 2013.

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©2021. Waller-Yoblonsky Fine Art is a research collaborative, working to track artists that got lost and overlooked due to time, changing styles, race, gender and/or sexual orientation. Our frequent blogs highlight artists and art movements that need renewed attention with improved information for the researcher and art collectors. The photo in this blog was created by Mr. Waller and all written materials are used under the Fair Use Section 107, Copyright Act, unless otherwise noted.

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