Traditional Crafts of TokyoTraditional Crafts of Tokyo 東京の伝統工芸品

Tokyo Tebori Insho

(Hand-Carved Seals)

Tokyo Tebori Insho Photo

All processes are for the "one and only".
In daily life and at milestones in life, "seals" have been closely related to the social life of Japanese people as a "one and only" proof of one's rights, obligations, and ownership. Tokyo Hand-Carved Seals, which have been produced since the Edo period, require different techniques such as character design, lettering, and rough engraving, all of which are carried out by a single craftsman. Only a handful of craftsmen in Tokyo are able to carve with the precision of a single hair. The seals are completed through a series of elaborate and tedious processes, and the skill of the craftsman shines through in many places. In this day and age when seals are manufactured in large quantities, the unparalleled skill of these craftsmen can be described as a "one and only" work of art that can never be imitated by machines. The tradition of beautiful Tokyo Hand-Carved Seals will continue to be handed down with the passion of our craftsmen.
Main Areas of Manufacture Chiyoda-ku, Minato-ku, Musashino-shi, etc.
Designation/ Certification Date January 26th, 2023 (Tokyo Certification)
Traditionally Used Raw Materials Base Boxwood, buffalo

Traditional Technologies and Techniques

  1. The ink draft is made by drafting the characters to be engraved on a sheet of paper, taking into consideration the number of strokes, etc., and visualizing the finished seal image.
  2. For character insertion, the characters are written in black letters on the seal stock with a small brush so that the characters are reversed from the seal draft, paying attention to the placement of each character.
  3. Rough engraving is done by carving with a seal knife on a seal that has been fixed between a seal stand or the like.
  4. For the finishing process, the characters are engraved with a finishing knife so that the line quality can be expressed delicately, paying attention to the thickness of the characters and the beginning and end of the strokes.

Traditional Technologies and Techniques

The history of the seal system, which originated in China, dates back to the Taika Reform of the Nara period.

Various types of seals were used through the ages, and the custom of using seals for official documents of clans, account books of villages and merchant families spread during the Edo period. In addition, the personal seals used by farmers were registered in the seal book by the headmen and they could be cross-checked when necessary.
As the use of seals became popular among the common people and the seal carvers by the Edo shogunate, seal carvers who carved seals and made seals for a living, spread throughout Edo.

In the Meiji period, a proclamation by the Dajokan Fukoku allowed all citizens to use a personal seal, and seals became firmly established in the social life of the Japanese people.

The Tokyo Seal Engravers Co-Operative Association was founded in 1919 under the leadership of Soju Ohashi VIII as an association of seal manufacturers and sellers, and has a history of more than 100 years.

The distinctive feature of Tokyo Hand-Carved Seals is that all processes are done by hand by skilled craftsmen. In particular, the "ink draft" which is a draft before carving a seal, is considered to be the most important process in making a seal.

Contact Details

Manufacturing Area Cooperative Name Tokyo Seal Engravers Co-Operative Association
Address 2-4 Kanda Jimbocho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 101-0051
TEL 03-3261-1017
Website http://www.tokyoinsho.jp/