Kin-gumo Plate Set — five Hidehira-nuri plates with gold-leaf clouds on black lacquer

Why this set

This is a set of five plates from Marusan Shikki, each 150 mm across, the size the workshop calls meimei-zara: a plate for one person's share. Put one in front of each guest for a sweet, a slice of fruit or a single course, or set them out beside a tiered box so everyone has somewhere to take their portion. The workshop suggests them for tea, where the gold leaf lifts the table. The plates are shallow with a low rim, and they stack when the table is cleared.

The pattern

Hidehira-nuri is a lacquer tradition from near Hiraizumi in Iwate, built on gold leaf and hand-painted motifs over a lacquer ground. Kin-gumo, gold cloud, is the workshop's name for this design. Two cloud-shaped panels, one larger than the other, sit on opposite sides of each plate just inside the rim, and the centre is left plain black. Within each cloud, squares of gold leaf set at varying angles lie among a scatter of finer flakes on a paler ground, so the panel reads as gold from across the room and as leaf and flake up close. The cloud outline is the genji-gumo, a stylised cloud shape that runs through Hidehira-nuri. The workshop says it seals the gold leaf under a coat of raw urushi to give the surface its strength. The leaf is laid by hand, so the squares fall a little differently on each of the five plates.

The workshop

Marusan Shikki has worked in Hidehira-nuri since 1904, from a workshop in Ichinoseki now in its fifth generation. Each plate is turned from tochi, Japanese horse chestnut, and built up in lacquer before the gold leaf goes on. The workshop says it keeps every stage of Hidehira-nuri production under one roof, from making the wooden base to the final decoration.

What to know before you buy

As with any urushi lacquerware, wash by hand in lukewarm water with a mild detergent, and keep it away from the microwave and dishwasher. For the first two to three months, start with lukewarm rather than very hot food or drink so the lacquer settles in gradually. Dry with a soft cloth, skip long soaking, and store away from direct sunlight.

Details

Sold as a set of five plates. Each measures W150 × D150 × H30 mm and weighs about 80 g. Made to order and shipped from Japan via DHL, with a lead time of approximately two months.

If five small plates would earn their place at your table, you can order the set below. Any questions on sizing or care are welcome; we read and answer every message ourselves.