The original of this pattern of special significance, known as meibutugire, is found at the buddhist temple of Daitokuji in Kyoto that was founded in the 14th century. The cloth that is covering the altar at the temple has this golden cobblestone pattern in the periphery. This pattern is also known as Takauji kinran (尊氏金襴), named after the first shogun and founder of Ashikaga shogunate.
Kitamura Tokusai has been making silk cloths, or fukusa, for practitioners of tea since 1712. Their elegant textiles are among the finest woven silk fabrics available in Japan and are made by highly skilled weavers in Kyoto’s historic Nishijin area. Kitamura Tokusai’s inventory of fabrics features over 400 patterns of historical significance, many of which were expressly favored by the founders and most prominent devotees of Japan’s tea culture. The Kitamura family continues to warmly welcome tea and textile enthusiasts to their Nishijin shop by hanging a fukusa, a symbol of hospitality, in the entrance.
