Tsubame Tsuiki Doki is copperware made in Tsubame City, Niigata Prefecture. A single flat copper sheet is repeatedly hammered up with a metal hammer and finished into a seamless, three-dimensional vessel. 'Tsuiki' means to raise a form by hammering. In Tsubame, making Japanese forged nails (wakugi) spread as a side job for farmers in the early Edo period, and skills in handling the hammer took root there. Against the backdrop of copper being mined at nearby Mt. Yahiko, the technique of tsuiki (hammering up) is said to have been introduced in 1768 (Meiwa 5) by Toshichi, an itinerant craftsman from Sendai. Gyokusendo, founded in 1816 (Bunka 13), is the representative workshop that has carried on this technique for more than 200 years. Kettles, teapots, sake vessels, flower vases, and other items are made, and their appeal lies in the advanced skill of hammering out even the spout from a single sheet, and in coloring that deepens the more the piece is used. It was designated a national Traditional Craft in 1981.
Origin
In Tsubame, around 1630, blacksmiths are said to have been invited from Edo to help farmers suffering from floods, and making Japanese forged nails (wakugi) was encouraged as a side job. When copper began to be produced at nearby Mt. Yahiko around 1700, copperwork flourished alongside nail-making. Then, in 1768 (Meiwa 5), Toshichi, an itinerant craftsman from Sendai, brought to Tsubame the method of tsuiki copperware, in which a copper sheet is hammered and contracted with a metal hammer to create a form. This is considered the beginning of Tsubame Tsuiki Doki.
History
In 1816 (Bunka 13), Tamagawa Kakubei took up this technique and founded Gyokusendo, making kettles and other items for local use. In the Meiji era, metal engraving techniques were incorporated and its reputation as a fine art craft grew, and it was exhibited at the 1873 Vienna World's Fair. It was designated a Niigata Prefecture Intangible Cultural Property in 1958 and a national Traditional Craft in 1981, and in 2010 Tamagawa Norio was recognized as a holder of the Important Intangible Cultural Property for metal hammering (tankin), a Living National Treasure.
Features
Its defining characteristic is that a single copper sheet is placed over iron tools called anvil stakes (ategane) and hammered to contract it while shaping it into three dimensions. Because copper hardens as it is struck, the form is refined while repeatedly annealing it, heating it over a fire to soften it. Its appeal lies in the soft sheen created by the hammer marks (tsuchime) left on the surface, and in how its color deepens and its luster grows with use over the years. Color tones vary by craftsman and workshop, including sentoku-iro and shikin-iro (purple-gold).
Techniques
Raising and hammer-contracting
A technique in which the copper sheet is held against anvil stakes such as the toriguchi and hammered to contract it little by little, raising it into the shape of a vessel. It is said that craftsmen use more than 20 different anvil stakes depending on the area being struck and the shape being made.
Kuchi-uchidashi (spout hammering)
A technique of hammering out the body and spout of a kettle or teapot seamlessly from a single copper sheet. Being able to hammer out even vessels with spouts is regarded as a symbol of the advanced skill of Tsubame Tsuiki Doki.
Decoration and coloring
Decoration is applied through pattern hammering, metal engraving, and kiribame (a technique of cutting out the base metal and inlaying a different metal). As a finish, the piece is boiled in a solution combining verdigris and copper sulfate to bring out color on the copper surface.
Materials Used
Production Process
- 1
Raising
The copper sheet is placed over an anvil stake and hammered to raise the form.
- 2
Annealing
The copper, hardened by hammering, is heated over a fire to soften it.
- 3
Hammer-contracting and shaping
Hammering and annealing are repeated to refine the shape of the vessel.
- 4
Engraving and decoration
Decoration is applied through pattern hammering and metal engraving.
- 5
Coloring finish
The piece is boiled in a solution combining verdigris and copper sulfate to bring out its color.
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Artisans & Workshops
玉川堂
A tsuiki copperware workshop founded in 1816 (Bunka 13). The shop, storehouse, and metal hammering workshop of its Tsubame main store are national Registered Tangible Cultural Properties, and it also runs a directly operated store in Ginza, Tokyo. The Tsubame Copperware Craft Cooperative, the production-area association, is also based within the company.
Official site →How to Buy
- 玉川堂 燕本店
- The main store, attached to the workshop, sells kettles, teapots, sake vessels, flower vases, and more. Open 8:30 to 17:30, closed Sundays and public holidays. There is also a directly operated store inside GINZA SIX in Ginza, Tokyo.Where to buy →PR
- 玉川堂 オンラインショップ
- Gyokusendo's official online shop. Guinomi sake cups start in the 17,000-yen range, and it offers pieces with different hammered patterns and color tones, such as shima-uchi (striped hammering), tama-uchi (dimpled hammering), and mizutama (polka dots). Because each piece is handmade one at a time, many items are sold out.Where to buy →PR
Hands-on Experiences
玉川堂 燕本店（工場見学）
新潟県燕市中央通2丁目2-21
Visitors can tour, free of charge, the workshop where craftsmen hammer copperware. Tours run five times a day at 10:00, 11:00, 13:00, 14:00, and 15:10, and take about 30 minutes. Closed Sundays and public holidays; groups of 5 or more must reserve in advance.
View details →燕市産業史料館
新潟県燕市大曲4330-1
Exhibits the history of metalworking in Tsubame, works by Living National Treasures, a collection of kiseru pipes, and more. An experience adding hammer marks to items such as a copper guinomi sake cup starts in the 2,000-yen range (admission separate, about 30 minutes).
View details →FAQ
Q. Does the color of tsuiki copperware change with use?
A. Copper undergoes a characteristic change over time: the more it is used, the deeper its color becomes and the more its luster grows. Gyokusendo carries on its own coloring techniques that make a feature of this change.
Q. How long does it take to become a fully fledged craftsman?
A. Mastering the techniques of tsuiki copperware is said to require around 6 to 10 years of training. Long experience is essential to develop the feel for using more than 20 different anvil stakes and varying the hammering according to the shape.
Q. How is it related to Tsubame's other metal products?
A. In Tsubame, the skills cultivated through making Japanese forged nails and tsuiki copperware expanded into making kiseru pipes in the Edo period, and files and Western tableware from the Meiji era onward. Tsuiki copperware is one of the industries that laid the foundation for the development of Tsubame as a metalworking town.