Antique Japanese Katagami Textile Stencil with Cranes, Branches, and Handwritten Notes longan and longan kansas city or near the hook from

or near the hook from which one hangs one’s robe

with what I believe is a coop number

used for storing and carrying gun powder (end plug clearly long gone

with the initials of the friends or family members from whence they came written in pencil

with the crank rotating the two painted glass slides in opposite directions to produce optical effects

Antique Japanese Katagami Textile Stencil with Cranes, Branches, and Handwritten Notes longan and longan kansas city or near the hook fromThis is a Japanese "katagami" paper stencil, made of layers of mulberry paper laminated together and treated with kakishibu persimmon tannin that lends durability and water resistence. Paper stencil like this were traditionally used for patterning textiles, especially kimono fabric, using a resist dyeing process called katazome. I am not at all an expert but find them quite beautiful things, and really love the (all handcut) pattern on this one, with