Iwakiri Bikodo

岩切美巧堂

Tin is characterized by its resistance to cracking, rust, water corrosion, mellowing of alcohol, and sealing properties. Among metals, tin does not crack because of its relatively soft characteristics.

Tin is a very special material; it does not rust in air or water. Because of its coarse molecular structure, tin has the ability to absorb impurities. As a result, water is purified, resistant to decay, and flowers last longer.

Tin is said to have high ionic and antibacterial effects and mellows out alcoholic beverages, and is still used in distillation tubes at shochu factories today.

Tea caddies and tea urns made of tin are hermetically sealed and are considered ideal for storing tea leaves and other items. 

 

錫の特徴は割れない、錆びない、水が腐らない、お酒がまろやかになる、密閉性が高い。錫は金属の中で、比較的やわらかいという特性があるため割れない。錫は非常に特殊な素材で、空気中でも水中でも錆びません。

錫は、分子が粗いため、不純物を吸収する性質があります。そのため、水が浄化され、腐りにくく、花が長持ちします。錫はイオン効果・抗菌効果が高く、お酒がまろやかになると言われ、現在も焼酎工場で蒸留器の管に使われています。錫製の茶筒や茶壷は密閉性が高く、茶葉などの保存には最適とされています。

 

Iwakiri Bikodo was founded in 1916 by Mr. Toichiro Iwakiri, who started manufacturing tin pipes (snake pipes).

Later, Toichiro thought that tinware had more potential than pipes, so he apprenticed his son, Toroku, to a long-established tinware manufacturer in Kagoshima, opening the door to the world of tinware. The Iwakiri Bikodo tinware that began in this way has been used for many years because of its non-toxicity and unique warmth, and the manufacturing process has been passed down from generation to generation.

They believe that preserving tradition means "bringing in new winds and new blood, refining and developing the techniques backed by tradition.

At Iwakiri Bikodo, about five young craftsmen have joined the tinware production team, bringing a modern sensibility to traditional techniques and breathing new life into their work. 

 

岩切美巧堂は、1916年（大正５年）に岩切 登一郎氏が錫パイプ（蛇管）を手がけたことに始まります。その後、パイプより錫器の方が将来性があると考えた登一郎氏は、息子の登六を鹿児島の錫器製造老舗業者に弟子入りさせて、錫器の世界への門戸を開きました。 こうして始まった岩切美巧堂の錫器は、その無害性と独得のあたたかみによって永年愛用され、その製法が受け継がれて来ました。

私たちは、伝統を守ることを「新しい風、新しい血を入れ、伝統に裏打ちされた技に磨きをかけ、発展させること」だと思っています。 岩切美巧堂では、現在５名程の若手も錫器製作に加わり、伝統的な手法に現代的な感覚で作品に新しい風を吹き込んでいます。

 

In 1656, a tin mine was excavated in Taniyama by Yagi Mondosuke Motonobu, which greatly benefited the Satsuma clan.

Tinware was used by samurai and merchants as a luxury item in the townspeople's culture, and became widespread in Kagoshima until every house had some type of tinware, becoming a traditional culture rooted in regional characteristics.

In 1916, our founder, Toichiro Iwakiri, who worked on tin pipes for cooling distillation at a shochu distillery in Kokubu, opened the door to the world of tinware by taking his son Toroku as his apprentice. After the war, Toroku returned to Kokubu and opened a workshop, establishing tinware as a craft. 

Tinware production has been passed down to his children and grandchildren in Kokubu, and the company has become a manufacturer that carries on the tradition of Satsuma tinware as well as tinware technology in Japan.

 

1656年、八木主水佑 元信（やぎもんどのすけもとのぶ）によって谷山に錫山が発掘され、薩摩藩に大きな利益をもたらします。錫器は、町人文化の中で高級感のあるものとして武家や商人の間で使われ、鹿児島ではどこの家にも何種類かの錫器があるまでに普及し、地域特性に根差した伝統文化となります。

大正５年、国分で焼酎工場の蒸留冷却用錫管を手がけた当社始祖の岩切 登一郎は、息子登六を弟子入りさせて、錫器の世界へ門戸を開きます。戦後、登六は国分に帰り作業場を開き、工芸品としての地位を確立しました。錫器製造は国分の地で子へ、孫へと引き継がれ、伝統の薩摩錫器を受け継ぐとともに、日本の錫器技術を担う製造元となっています。