Samurai Armor Designs Adorn Bags, Accessories; Traditional Techniques Applied to Everyday Items by Tokyo Craftswoman

By Akio Oikawa / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

10:20 JST, May 5, 2025

Armor is a symbol of samurai warriors. Originally a practical form of protection, samurai warriors also regarded their armor as a way to show off their presence, and decorated it strikingly. Today, armor designs are incorporated into bags and accessories, bringing out the wearer’s individuality.

In the Heian period (794 to late 12th century) and Kamakura period (late 12th century to 1333), high-ranking warriors such as “sodaisho” (commander-in-chief) used a type of armor called “o-yoroi” (great armor), which features large sleeves. Since their armor symbolized their authority, it was extravagantly decorated and built using the most sophisticated metalworking, woodworking and dyeing techniques of the time.

One of the techniques is “odoshi,” a decorative technique in which strips of boards used for the torso and sleeves are tied together using leather or braided cords. The knots vary depending on the armor and the cords come in various colors, such as white, red and purple. The technique increases the strength of the armor while adding splendor and originality.

“Not only is samurai armor strong but it is a symbol of timeless beauty,” said Katsuyo Goto, fifth-generation owner of the over 120-year-old samurai armor factory “Koujin,” in Sumida Ward, Tokyo, and the only female samurai armor artisan in Japan.

Born in Sumida Ward, Goto studied under her father for nearly 30 years and became the fifth “Chikaraishi Koujin,” the name inherited by the representative of her family, in 2018.

She began producing bags called “Yoroi-Temoto” using the odoshi technique, aiming to make the appeal of samurai armor more widely known, including to women.

With the odoshi technique, she creates a design on the soft, strong deer leather used in making samurai armor. She uses patterns such as “murasaki susogo,” in which the colors darken from top to bottom — from white to yellow to purple — and “omodaka,” a pattern based on the image of wild water grasses growing in ponds and streams.

These elegant patterns are the same as those in pieces of samurai armor designated as important cultural properties, according to Goto. With the functions of a daily-use bag in mind, its handle is designed to be removable and interchangeable.

Since she makes all the parts by hand, it takes at least three months to complete a bag. Lately, she has begun making business card holders, similar to those used by businessmen, and table clocks for interior decor.

“I enjoy thinking about what items I can apply these armor-making techniques to. I would like to make more people feel closer to the beauty of samurai armors,” Goto said enthusiastically.

Reproducing national treasures

For generations, her factory has focused on making replicas of pieces of samurai armor that have been preserved as cultural properties.

The graceful white samurai armor suit is a replica of the Shiroito Odoshi Tsumadori Yoroi, a national treasure owned by the Kushihiki Hachiman Shrine in Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture. The suit is 65 centimeters tall. Goto studied the techniques and materials used in the Nambokucho period (1336-1392), when the original suit was built, and copied all its details.

Making a suit of samurai armor requires more than 5,000 steps and about six months to complete, according to Goto. “Suits of samurai armor are masterpieces that contain the traditional beauty of Japan,” she said.