Odawara Casting is a metalworking craft passed down in Odawara City, Kanagawa Prefecture. It is said to have begun in 1534, near the end of the Muromachi period, when Yamada Jirōzaemon, who had moved to Odawara from Kawachi Province, opened a foundry there. In 1702, during the Edo period, the Kashiwagi family started their own foundry business and made a name for themselves producing sound-making objects using an alloy of copper and tin blended to their own ratio, called sahari. Today the main products are 'sound objects' — wind chimes (furin), Buddhist altar bells (orin), and hand bells — prized for their clear, long-lingering tones, and the Kashiwagi Art Casting Institute, the only foundry now remaining in Odawara, carries this tradition forward. The workshop is also known for making the ornate palace-style wind chimes used in Akira Kurosawa's film 'Red Beard,' and it displays and sells wind chimes, altar bells, and other products at its on-site 'Sahari Gallery: Sound Object Hall,' while in recent years it has also worked on collaborative pieces with Hakone Yosegi-zaiku (marquetry).
Origin
Odawara Casting is said to trace back to 1534, when Yamada Jirōzaemon, who had moved from Kawachi Province, opened a foundry in Odawara. During the Warring States period, foundry craftsmen worked under the protection of the Later Hojo clan, which then ruled Odawara, making everyday and religious items such as pots, kettles, and temple bells. In 1702, during the Edo period, the Kashiwagi family started their own foundry business and thereafter devoted themselves to making sound objects using sahari, an alloy of copper and tin.
History
In 1891, when the Yamada Jirōzaemon family relocated to Tokyo, the Kashiwagi family took over their entire set of foundry equipment, greatly expanding their production. At its peak, dozens of foundries lined the streets of the city, but changes in lifestyle and a shortage of successors gradually reduced their number. The Kashiwagi Art Casting Institute has kept honing its skill in making sound objects — including the palace-style wind chimes used in Akira Kurosawa's film 'Red Beard' — while carrying the tradition forward, and it now stands as the sole remaining workshop upholding Odawara's casting history.
Features
The greatest characteristic of Odawara Casting lies in its casting technique using sahari, an alloy of copper and tin blended to the workshop's own ratio. Sahari is hard and prone to cracking, making it difficult to shape, but it produces a clear, beautiful tone with a long-lingering resonance, making it an ideal material for sound objects such as wind chimes, altar bells, and hand bells. Flower vases and tea-ceremony items are also made, but the workshop's sound objects, crafted with an exacting focus on tone, are especially highly regarded, each one carefully cast and tuned.
Techniques
Sahari Casting
A technique of melting and casting sahari, an alloy of copper and tin blended to the workshop's own ratio. Though hard and difficult to work, it produces a clear tone with a long-lingering resonance, and is used to make sound objects such as wind chimes and altar bells.
Materials Used
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Artisans & Workshops
柏木美術鋳物研究所
A foundry said to have been founded in 1702, and the only one remaining in Odawara. The current head, Kashiwagi Teruyuki, has inherited the technique of making sound objects using sahari, and has made pieces such as the palace-style wind chimes used in Akira Kurosawa's film 'Red Beard,' with an exacting focus on tone. The workshop's 'Sahari Gallery: Sound Object Hall' displays and sells its works.
Official site →How to Buy
- 柏木美術鋳物研究所（砂張ギャラリー鳴物館）
- Wind chimes, altar bells, flower vases, and other items can be purchased directly at the workshop's on-site gallery, and orders are also accepted by phone or through the website. Custom orders can be discussed as well.Where to buy →PR
FAQ
Q. What kind of material is sahari?
A. It is an alloy of copper and tin blended to the workshop's own ratio. Though hard and difficult to work, it has the property of producing a clear tone with a long-lingering resonance, and is used to make sound objects such as wind chimes and altar bells.
Q. Is there still a workshop making Odawara Casting today?
A. The Kashiwagi Art Casting Institute is the only workshop still carrying on the tradition of Odawara Casting, which dates back to the Muromachi period. It mainly manufactures and sells sound objects such as wind chimes and altar bells.