YAMAGATA IMONO / YAMAGATA CAST METALWARE
About 950 years ago / 1000s / Heian Period
Yamagata casting is traditionally traced back roughly nine to ten centuries, when metalworkers traveling with the forces of Minamoto no Yoriyoshi discovered that sand and earth around the Mamigasaki River were ideal for molds and settled in the area. In the early Edo period, Mogami Yoshiaki concentrated foundries in the district now known as Domachi.
In Japan, Yamagata casting is known for thin walls and refined surfaces on kettles, tea-ceremony cauldrons, vases and temple bells. The same region also produces industrial castings, so traditional craft and modern manufacturing exist literally side by side.
The mold itself is made from sand rather than metal. Fine sand is compacted and patterned with tools before molten metal above 1,000°C is poured in. Because the mold must be broken to remove the finished object, the carefully prepared negative form is normally used only once.