Drawstring bag - Drawstring bag

A type of pouch. When worn with Japanese clothing, it was also called a koshi-kinchaku (a pouch with a drawstring) because it was hung from the waist. It is a small pouch that is both practical and decorative, and is mainly used to store coins and seals. The pouches are made from silk, cotton, woolen cloth, or leather. They come in a variety of shapes, including round, oval, and dried persimmon, and are not fixed. In many cases, the drawstring at the opening is made from braided cord or leather. Leather drawstrings are made from tanned leather or inden leather with patterns drawn on them. Originally derived from a flint pouch used to store fire-starting equipment, in the early Edo period they were called mae-kinchaku (front drawstring) and hung in front of the obi (front body) and used as a coin purse. The first pouches only had a string, but later, like inro (seal cases) and tobacco pouches, a netsuke (charm) attached to the opening string was attached to the obi and hung from the waist. Furthermore, for small children, a lost child tag made from a board or metal plate was hung along with the pouch, and this custom continued in Tokyo until the end of the Taisho period. The meoto pouch, which appeared at the end of the Edo period, was an elaborate design that was useful in emergencies, with the inside of the pouch divided into two sections, one for a coin purse and the other for medicine or amulets.

Also, because coins were kept in a purse, pickpockets who would cut them off with a razor were called purse cutters, and for a time they ran rampant throughout town.

After that, the use of purses decreased with the development of wallets. After the Meiji period, purses were also made from knitted wool, lace, or beads, but with the spread of wallets and clasps, they became accessories for gifts.

[Takeshi Endo]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

袋物の一種。和装の場合、腰に下げたところから、腰巾着という名称も使われた。実用と装身具的な役割を兼ね、主として硬貨や印判を収める小さな袋物である。袋の材料は絹織物、綿織物、羅紗(らしゃ)、革類。その形態も円形、楕円(だえん)形、干柿(ほしがき)形などさまざまで固定してはいない。巾着の口紐(くちひも)は打ち紐や革紐を用いた例が多い。革巾着はなめし革、印伝革(いんでんがわ)に模様を描いたものが用いられている。元来、発火用具入れの火打ち袋から発したもので、江戸時代初期には前巾着といわれて帯の前（前身頃(まえみごろ)）のところに下げ、小銭入れとして使用された。最初の巾着は打ち紐だけであったが、のちには印籠(いんろう)、たばこ入れと同様に、口紐につけた根付(ねつけ)を帯に挟んで腰に下げるようになった。さらに幼児では、迷子札を板や金属板でつくっていっしょに下げたが、この風習は、東京では大正末期まで行われた。江戸末期に現れた女夫(めおと)巾着は、巾着の中を二つに仕切って、一方を小銭入れ、他方を薬や守り札を入れて、非常の際に役だつようなくふうを凝らしたものである。

　また、巾着に硬貨を納めていたところから、これをかみそりで切り取るすりを巾着切と称し、彼らは一時町中を横行した。

　その後財布の発達により巾着の利用は減じた。巾着も明治以降になると、毛糸編物、レースあるいはビーズなどでもつくられたが、財布、がまぐちの普及で祝儀の際の装身具と化した。

［遠藤　武］

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