Traditional Japanese rain cape or "mino" made from unknown, dark brown plant fiber. Cape covers entire body, with wide coverage of the shoulders. It features openings on both sides from the shoulder to the midriff; a small, circular opening for neck; and a seam down the middle latched shut via round knots pushed through small loops. Entire object is two layers thick. Weave consists of tiny strands of organic material pressed into sheets woven diagonally through a framework of "warps" and "wefts," producing a contiguous, uninterrupted woven surface. The edges are closed by thin "seams," and one seam about 4" from the bottom of the cape runs the full circumference of the object. Loose, criss-crossing material pressed into sheets extrude from bottom below this seam and along the sides at the arm openings. Object accompanied by braided cord of unidentified material about 40" long. length - 42", width - 31.5", thickness - 2
Donor:
Dai Williams, Estate of Karin Nelson, and Karin Nelson
Collection place:
Japan
Culture or time period:
Japanese
Collector:
Dai Williams
Object type:
ethnography
Object class:
Rain capes
Function:
1.2 Gathering
Accession date:
March 20, 2012
Department:
Asia (except western Russia)
Dimensions:
length 42 inches, weight 31.5 inches, and depth 2 inches
Comment:
The term "mino" describes a traditional garment, a raincoat or rain cape, made primarily from straw and worn to cover the entire body and protect agricultural workers from wet conditions in fields or paddies. The Japanese word "kera" is also used to describe these traditional rain capes. No tag attached to object.