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HOME > Japan’s Local Treasures > Tsuiki Copperware
Tsubame City, at the epicenter of hand-hammered copperware craft for centuries
Tsubame City, Niigata Prefecture
For hundreds of years, craft has been the lifeblood of Tsubame City. Here, the sounds of hammering metals are as ubiquitous as cicadas in the summer.
During the last 200 years, artisans in Tsubame have devoted themselves to Tsuiki Copperware, the manipulation of copper by hand and hammer. Originally, it was simply a way to create vessels for everyday use, but over time as peoples’ lifestyles changed, along with the artistic products being created. As trade and partnership with other parts of the world increased at the turn of the 20th century, so did the opportunity for new influences and inspiration.
Today, Tsuiki Copperware is still made for real life use. Like a good leather wallet or lacquered bowl, the colors and textures grow and change as you use it, blurring the line between ordinary products and works of art.
At the Tsubame Industrial Materials Museum, the most highly appraised Tsuiki Copperware are on display. Come visit Tsubame City, in Niigata Prefecture, one of the only areas producing Tsuiki Copperware.
How to get there
Take the Shinkansen bullet train from Tokyo Station to Tsubamesanjo Station,which is about 1 hour and 50 minutes. It’s about a 10-minute drive from Tsubamesanjo Station and a 5-minute drive from Sanjo Tsubame Interchange off the Hokuriku Expressway Outbound Route.
4330-1 Omagari, Tsubame-shi, Niigata-ken
