Winter parade jacket (hikeshi shozoku) and breastpiece for a member of a daimyo firefighters' brigade

Object is a wool jacket of short length, with broad sleeves and a deep slit in the back. A plain wide band sewn along the sides serves as a collar at the top. The only means of closure are two small flaps sewn to the inside edge which attach to one another with a lacquer button. The color of the jacket is a marigold yellow; the silk lining is purple. Accompanying the jacket is a matching bib, of similar materials, with two silk and lacquer buttons attached to silk cordage at the top. (The jacket has two silk cordage loops sewn into the lining at the top edge to secure the bib.) Three white wool crests are appliqued on the back of sleeves of the garment. The bib has a cloud design at the top and crest below it. Sleeve openings, back slit and bottom edge have a decorative diamond patterned trim. A small, yellow silk loop is sewn on the outside edge of the garment, on the proper right shoulder.

The yellow and white wool are woven in a plain weave fabric that has a brushed finish, like flannel. The purple silk is a plain weave, with a dark blue weft and a pale red warp. The trim is woven in a simple plaiting (or plain-weave fabric cut on the bias), with three strips of a metallic-covered paper in one direction and 10-12 strands of white (silk?) fiber in the other. The black silk component of the bib buttons are a twill weave, with black wefts and brown warps.

National Museum of Asian Art Collection