Wakayama: Novice Craftsman Becomes Successor in Traditional Japanese Pilgrim Hats Worn on Kumano Kodo Routes

The Yomiuri Shimbun

11:00 JST, July 20, 2024

TANABE, Wakayama — A craftsman new to the trade of making traditional hats typically worn by pilgrims of the historic Kumano Kodo pilgrimage routes has become the heir to the ancient craft.

Kenichi Umezaki, 66, from Fukuoka Prefecture began making traditional minachigasa hats in April. The conical hat is made from thinly shaved Japanese cypress wood and has long been loved from ancient to modern times by pilgrims trekking the route, now a World Heritage site, in the Kii Peninsula. The hat’s lightness, ventilation and cypress oil on its surface, which repels rainwater, have contributed to the longevity of its popularity.

The production of minachigasa hats dates back about 1,000 years. Even in the early 20th century, there were still eight workshops producing them in Tanabe, Wakayama Prefecture. But since the 1960s, Yasuo Shiba, 103, had been the only person making them.

About 20 years ago, Umezaki visited Shiba after moving to Tanabe. Umezaki asked the craftsman — then in his early 80s — to teach him how to make the traditional hats.

Shiba initially refused, saying, “I can’t,” but Umezaki never gave up. He tried making hats in his way and brought them to Shiba, who eventually began giving him tips. Finally, in October last year, Shiba recognized Umezaki as his successor.

Shiba found it physically hard to continue the craft and was prepared for its production to end with him as the last craftsman.

“I was relieved to be able to pass down the tradition to the next person,” Shiba said.

Although Umezaki began producing hats at home, it still takes him about three days to produce a single hat.

“I can’t make them well like Shiba yet. But I want to inherit the tradition and pass it down to somebody in the future,” Umezaki said.