2025.07.17
伝検通信（メルマガ）週刊メールマガジン「伝検通信」 第66号
週刊メールマガジン「伝検通信」第66号をお届けします。
今週のトップ記事では、京都の伝統工芸の技術を、建築資材やインテリア製品に活用する取り組みをお伝えします。
「クイズで肩慣らし」は、前回クイズの答え・解説と、「茶道」の問題です。
第２回伝検は現在実施中で、こちらから申し込みを受け付けていま
伝検公式教材・参考書・サイト https://denken-test.jp/
目次
・ 京の技術、地域商社が守る 伝統工芸、建材やインテリアに
・ 「クイズで肩慣らし」 第65回＝「茶道」
・ 伝検協会だより
京の技術、地域商社が守る 伝統工芸、建材やインテリアに
楽焼の陶板を使ったタイルのサンプル（時事通信社提供）
茶わんなどに使われる「楽焼」や西陣織といった京都の伝統工芸について、建築資材やインテリア製品に活用する取り組みを、京都中央信用金庫（京都市）傘下の地域商社が進めている。資金面にとどまらないサポートで新たな需要を創出し、技術の伝承や地域活性化を後押ししたい考えだ。
京都の工芸品はインバウンド（訪日客）らに人気だが、ライフスタイルの変化で日常使いの需要は減り、後継者不足も深刻化。同信金の白波瀬誠（しらはせ・まこと）会長は「これまで考えられなかったやり方で伝統産業を現代のビジネスに生かすチャレンジだ」と強調する。
「京都アンプリチュード」は２０２２年７月、同信金の１００％子会社として設立。伝統工芸と現代的なデザインを組み合わせた高級感のある和素材「ＷＡＺＡＩ（ワザイ）」を展開し、ブランドアドバイザーには仏エルメス副社長を務めた斎藤峰明氏を起用。京都市中京区の本社兼ショールームには、西陣織を使った椅子や楽焼の陶板タイルなど約５００種類の見本が並ぶ。
同信金の取引先に加え、個別では接点を持ちにくかった大手企業との商談も仲介。今年３月末までの納入実績は、デザイン会社やハウスメーカー、宿泊施設や飲食店など全国２２４件に上る。融資や資産運用の提案も行っており、グループ全体で事業者を支える構えだ。
着物用の白生地メーカー「伊と幸（いとこう）」（京都市）は、絹織物をガラスで挟み、建材やインテリアなどに使える「絹ガラス」を提供する。着物の需要が大きく拡大するとは見込めない中、北川幸（きたがわ・さち）社長は「他の建材と組み合わせ、トータルで提案してもらえるので施主の納得も得やすい」とし、京都アンプリチュードとの協業に期待を寄せている。
（２０２５年６月２７日 時事通信配信）
「クイズで肩慣らし」 第65回＝「茶道」
～伝統文化に関するさまざまな話題をクイズ形式でお届けします～
茶道が持つ美意識や哲学は海外からも注目されている
第65回
問題：英語で「茶の本（The Book of Tea）」を著し、茶道の精神を西洋に紹介した明治時代の思想家は誰でしょう。（答えと解説は次号で）
「おかげ参り」に行けない主人の代わりに「おかげ犬」が伊勢参り
【前回の問題と答え・解説】
問題：江戸時代に「おかげ参り」と呼ばれる伊勢神宮への集団参拝が流行しました。病気などで「おかげ参り」ができない場合、ある方法でご利益を得ようとした人もいたそうです。その方法とは何でしょう。
答え：飼い犬を自分の代わりに参拝させた。
解説：江戸時代後期に、道中のお金と伊勢参りをする旨を書いた文書を犬の首にくくりつけて送り出した人たちがいました。こうして送り出された犬は「おかげ犬」と呼ばれ、旅人や街道筋の住民は、犬に餌をやったり、雨宿りをさせたりして、犬の参拝をリレー式にサポートし、その善行が「徳」になるとされていたとのことです。歌川広重の浮世絵「隷書版東海道」の「四十四 五十三次 四日市」にも、おかげ犬とおぼしき白い犬が描かれています。
伝検協会だより
▼第２回検定試験は、8月１７日（日）の最終日まで残り１カ月となりました。申し込みは最終日３日前の８月１４日（木）まで可能です。第２回の合格者にはカードサイズの合格認定書をお送りするとともに、伝検オリジナルの和紙製メモパッドをプレゼントします。さらに、２級合格者の中から成績上位の方には伝統工芸の京染で作った伝検ロゴ入りカードケースを進呈します。チャレンジをお待ちしています。
▼京都伝統産業ミュージアム（京都産業振興センター運営）
【編集後記】
今週のトップ記事を読んで、陶芸家である十五代酒井田柿右衛門の言葉を思い出しました。 有田焼の技術の蓄積や歴史を守りつつ、それを生かし、 新しいことに果敢にチャレンジし続けることこそが伝統であると話していたそうです。「企業30年説（企業の成長から衰退まで30年）」がある一方で「100年企業」もたくさんあるのが日本です。コアとなる技術や価値を上手に展開させていくことが大切だと感じました。
【English version】
Weekly e-newsletter Denken Tsushin, No. 66.
We are pleased to deliver the 66th issue of the weekly email magazine ‘Denken News.’
This week's top article introduces efforts to utilise traditional craft techniques from Kyoto in construction materials and interior products.
“Let's Practice with Quizzes”features the answers and explanations to the previous quiz, as well as questions about tea ceremony.
The second Denken exam is currently underway, and applications are being accepted here. Please make use of the official textbook and online lectures below.
Denken Official Textbooks, Reference Books, and Website: https://denken-test.jp/official_text/
Table of Contents
・ Kyoto's Technology, Preserved by Local Trading Companies: Traditional Crafts, Building Materials, and Interior Design
・ “Let's Practice with Quizzes”No. 65: ‘The Way of Tea’
・ News from the Denken Association
Kyoto's technology, protected by local trading companies: traditional crafts, building materials, and interior design
Sample tiles made from raku-yaki ceramic plates (provided by Jiji Press)
Kyoto Chuo Shinkin Bank (Kyoto City) and its regional trading companies are promoting initiatives to utilise traditional Kyoto crafts such as raku ware and Nishijin textiles, which are used in tea bowls and other items, in building materials and interior products. The aim is to create new demand through support that goes beyond financial assistance, thereby promoting the transmission of techniques and regional revitalisation.
Kyoto's crafts are popular among inbound tourists, but changes in lifestyle have reduced demand for everyday use, and the shortage of successors has become severe. Shirahase Makoto, chairman of the credit union, emphasises, ‘This is a challenge to utilise traditional industries in modern business in ways that were previously unimaginable.’
Kyoto Amplitude was established in July 2022 as a wholly owned subsidiary of the credit union. It offers WAZAI, a high-quality Japanese material that combines traditional craftsmanship with modern design, and has appointed Mr. Mineaki Saito, former vice president of Hermes, as its brand advisor. The headquarters and showroom in Nakagyo Ward, Kyoto City, features approximately 500 samples, including chairs made with Nishijin-ori fabric and Raku-yaki ceramic tiles.
In addition to the credit union's existing clients, it also facilitates negotiations with major companies that were previously difficult to engage with individually. As of the end of March this year, the credit union has delivered products to 224 locations nationwide, including design companies, housing manufacturers, accommodation facilities, and restaurants. It also offers financing and asset management proposals, with the entire group supporting businesses.
Ito Kou (Kyoto City), a manufacturer of white fabric for kimonos, provides ‘silk glass,’ which is silk fabric sandwiched between glass and can be used for building materials and interior design. Despite the lack of significant growth in kimono demand, President Kitagawa Sachi stated, ‘By combining it with other building materials and offering a comprehensive proposal, it is easier to gain the client's approval,’ expressing optimism about the collaboration with Kyoto Amplitude.
(27 June 2025, Jiji Press)
‘Warm up with a quiz’ 65th edition = ‘The Way of Tea’
~We present various topics related to traditional culture in quiz format~
The aesthetic sense and philosophy of tea ceremony are attracting attention overseas.
No. 65
Question: Who was the Meiji-era thinker who wrote The Book of Tea in English and introduced the spirit of the tea ceremony to the West? (The answer and explanation will be in the next issue.)
The ‘Oka-ga-inu’ dog goes to Ise in place of its owner, who is unable to make the ‘Oka-ga-mairi’ pilgrimage.
[Previous question and answer/explanation]
Question: During the Edo period, group pilgrimages to Ise Shrine, known as ‘okage-mairi,’ became popular. For those who were unable to participate in ‘okage-mairi’ due to illness or other reasons, there were some who sought to receive the same blessings through a certain method. What was that method?
Answer: They sent their dogs to participate in the pilgrimage in their place.
Explanation: In the late Edo period, people would tie a document stating their intention to make the pilgrimage to Ise and the amount of money they had for the journey to their dog's neck and send it on its way. These dogs were called ‘okage dogs,’ and travellers and residents along the road would feed them, shelter them from the rain, and support their pilgrimage in a relay-style manner, believing that these good deeds would bring them ‘virtue.’ In Utagawa Hiroshige's ukiyo-e print ‘Raisho-ban T?kaid?’ (The T?kaid? Road in Raisho Style), specifically in the section titled ‘44. 53 Stages: Yokkaichi,’ a white dog resembling an ‘okage dog’ is depicted.
Denken Association Newsletter
▼The second certification exam will be held on Sunday, 17 August, with only one month remaining until the deadline. Applications will be accepted until Thursday, 14 August, three days before the deadline. Successful candidates for the second examination will receive a card-sized certificate of qualification, along with a traditional Japanese paper memo pad created by the Traditional Crafts Certification Association. Additionally, top-performing candidates who pass the Level 2 examination will be presented with a card case featuring the Traditional Crafts Certification Association logo, made using traditional Kyoto dyeing techniques. We look forward to your participation.
▼The Kyoto Traditional Industries Museum (operated by the Kyoto Industrial Promotion Centre) is hosting the second Kyoto Craft and Design Competition, ‘TRADITION for TOMORROW,’ and will begin accepting entries on 18 August. The competition seeks works that utilise traditional craft techniques while responding to current lifestyles and needs. There are two categories: the ‘Artisans and Artists Category’ targeting traditional craftsmen and artists with ties to Kyoto, and the ‘Student Category’ targeting students from art universities and vocational schools nationwide. For details, please visit here (TRADITION for TOMORROW - Kyoto Traditional Industries Museum, Miyako Messe Basement 1st Floor, Kyoto Museum of Crafts and Design).
[Editor's Note]
Reading this week's top article reminded me of the words of the 15th generation Sakai Kakiemon, a potter. He reportedly said that preserving the accumulated techniques and history of Arita ware while leveraging them to boldly pursue new challenges is what truly constitutes tradition. While there is the ‘30-year corporate cycle theory’ (the idea that a company's growth and decline span 30 years), Japan also has numerous ‘100-year companies.’ I felt that effectively expanding core technologies and values is crucial.
カテゴリー: 伝検通信（メルマガ）