#Tag · bonfire.cafe

It was Ei'ichirō's wife Yuki, in 1895, that suggested he shape the incense into coils.
It took 7 years to perfect!

Nowadays katori senkō has become synonymous with a pig-shaped holder called 'kayari buta' (蚊遣り豚 the 'mosquito repelling pig').
It is deeply evocative of summer.

#pig #kayaributa #蚊遣り豚

Kayari buta, a pig shaped holder for mosquito coils. The coil is hung from a metal wire after being lit...the smoke easily curls out of the pig's open back and wide snout.

Camellia Tea Ceremony

@camelliakyoto@mastodon.social · last week

🌫️SMOKE TO PIG🐷

In the Edo period it was common to use smoke as a simple mosquito repellant, but as most buildings were made of paper and wood many people in built up areas were concerned about naked flames.

Boars, as familiars of the fire deity, became linked to fire protection.

Woodblock print a young women beneath a mosquito net.

Image thanks - https://ja.ukiyo-e.org/ — Woodblock print a young women beneath a mosquito net. Image thanks - https://ja.ukiyo-e.org/

Woodblock print a young lady hanging a mosquito net.

Image thanks - https://ja.ukiyo-e.org/ — Woodblock print a young lady hanging a mosquito net. Image thanks - https://ja.ukiyo-e.org/

Woodblock print of a baby Wu Meng fanning smoke to keep mosquitoes away from his sleeping father.

Image thanks - https://ja.ukiyo-e.org/ — Woodblock print of a baby Wu Meng fanning smoke to keep mosquitoes away from his sleeping father. Image thanks - https://ja.ukiyo-e.org/

Woodblock print of a fire raging in Edo.

Image thanks - https://ja.ukiyo-e.org/ — Woodblock print of a fire raging in Edo. Image thanks - https://ja.ukiyo-e.org/

Camellia Tea Ceremony

@camelliakyoto@mastodon.social replied · last week

In addition to this connection between boars and fire, it was believed that the thick, hairy skin of the animals helped protect them from mosquitoes, and so these ideas maybe inspired potters when they came to create a holder for incense coils...

#kayaributa #蚊遣り豚 #incense

A banner featuring a leaping boar at Goo-jinja (in celebration of the Year of the Boar).

A sea of omikuji holders in the shape of boars at Kennin-ji's Zenkyo-an.

A boar shaped monaka (a wafer filled with bean jam).

Boar statue at Goo-jinja (the animals are the familiars of the enshrined god).

Camellia Tea Ceremony

@camelliakyoto@mastodon.social · last week

It was Ei'ichirō's wife Yuki, in 1895, that suggested he shape the incense into coils.
It took 7 years to perfect!

Nowadays katori senkō has become synonymous with a pig-shaped holder called 'kayari buta' (蚊遣り豚 the 'mosquito repelling pig').
It is deeply evocative of summer.

#pig #kayaributa #蚊遣り豚

Kayari buta, a pig shaped holder for mosquito coils. The coil is hung from a metal wire after being lit...the smoke easily curls out of the pig's open back and wide snout.

Camellia Tea Ceremony

@camelliakyoto@mastodon.social replied · last week

But why a pig?

There is no definitive answer, but the connection between pigs (in reality boars) and mosquitoes may have solidified in Edo times.
It is likely the pottery pig-shaped coil holders appeared from the Meiji period in Aichi prefecture.

#kayaributa #蚊遣り豚 #Japan

An old kayari buta at Omuro-tei (villa).

Camellia Tea Ceremony

@camelliakyoto@mastodon.social · last week

In Japan it's common to see the traditional 'katori senkō' (蚊取り線香) outside homes and in gardens during the summer.

To combat mosquitoes Ueyama Ei'ichirō (上山英一郎) developed incense sticks in the late 1800s mixed from starch, orange skin, and pyrethrum powder.

#Japan #蚊取り線香 #mosquitocoils

A traditional mosquito coil (katori senko)...a spiral-shaped, slow-burning incense designed to repel or kill mosquitoes by releasing pyrethroid-based smoke into the air.

Camellia Tea Ceremony

@camelliakyoto@mastodon.social replied · last week

It was Ei'ichirō's wife Yuki, in 1895, that suggested he shape the incense into coils.
It took 7 years to perfect!

Nowadays katori senkō has become synonymous with a pig-shaped holder called 'kayari buta' (蚊遣り豚 the 'mosquito repelling pig').
It is deeply evocative of summer.

#pig #kayaributa #蚊遣り豚

Kayari buta, a pig shaped holder for mosquito coils. The coil is hung from a metal wire after being lit...the smoke easily curls out of the pig's open back and wide snout.