Kirikane (cut gold leaf)

Japanese: 切金(截金) - きりかね

A decorative technique in which gold or silver leaf is cut into thin, linear, triangular or rectangular pieces that are then pasted onto sculptures or paintings to create contours, folds in clothing, and patterns. In painting, it was an essential technique for the decoration of Fujiwara Buddhist paintings in the Heian period. In the Phoenix Hall door painting, the contours and folds of the clothing of the Buddha and Bodhisattva are all drawn with kirikane, and in the Ōtoku Nirvana Painting from 1086 (Ōtoku 3), the clothing of Shaka is decorated with kirikane patterns such as shippo tsunagi (shippo pattern), tatewaku pattern, manji tsunagi (manji pattern), and chrysanthemum circle pattern, adding splendor to the painting.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

金箔や銀箔を截断し，細長い線状や三角，四角の小片とし，これを彫刻や絵画などに貼付して輪郭線や衣褶線，文様をあらわす装飾技法。絵画では平安時代の藤原仏画の装飾に欠かせない技法として重用された。鳳凰堂扉絵では，仏菩薩の着衣の輪郭線や衣褶線はすべて截金であらわされ，1086年(応徳3)の《応徳涅槃図》では釈迦の着衣に，七宝つなぎ(七宝文)，立涌（たてわく）文，卍つなぎ(卍文)，菊花丸文などの截金文様が施され，画面に華麗さを添えている。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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