Coal Pits in the Old Days: Craftsmen Who Visited the Pit, the Rice Powder Sculptor and the Candy Sculptor
1958 - 1963

Mukashi no Yama: Yama o Otozureru Gijutsu Shonin, Dango Zaiku ni Amezaiku
[Coal Pits in the Old Days: Craftsmen Who Visited the Pit, the Rice Powder Sculptor and the Candy Sculptor]
21.1 x 30.3 cm Ink Painting

(The children in the pit mainly used 1-kin [0.001 yen] mine tokens [kippu or tanken].)
These craftsmen sold their work at 1 sen (0.01 yen) a piece to the delight of children.
The rice powder sculptures were made from balls of kneaded rice powder and they were colored beautifully with five kinds of dyes. The rice powder sculptor made dolls, flowers, fruits, etc.
The other craftsman, or candy man, used only amber-colored candy and colored his pieces with red and blue dyes. He mainly made birds or gourds. He made his crafts by blowing into the candy with a thin bamboo pipe in his mouth. He used a little candy for each of his pieces.
It seems that those people could make a living through such merry businesses in the Meiji era (1868-1912).


Translation Assisted by Mr. Nathan Johndro

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