What Is The Origin Of The Japanese Puzzle Box?

The Japanese people are credited with making the first puzzle boxes. Documents show that these traditional boxes were first created in the Hakone region around the early- to mid-1 !!s. Howe"er# some art experts suggest that the practice could be much# much older. The personal secret boxes# known as Himitsu $ako# were created to be sold to people who were tra"eling by carriage. They used these puzzle boxes to hide and protect their "aluables %rom robbers in the highway. & robber would think it was 'ust an ornamental ob'ect so he would ignore the Japanese puzzle box. The master cra%tsmen de"eloped two types o% decorati"e styles o% puzzle boxes( the )ougan style and the *osegi-)aiku style. +engoku +hirakawa# a tea shop owner# was one o% the artisans who popularized the )ougan techni,ue. *osegi-)aiku was de"eloped in the last years o% the -do .eriod. The first use o% this mar,uetry techni,ue is attributed to /ihei 0shikawa. 0n the 1 1!2s puzzle boxes were produced %or export. 0t was "ery popular around the +econd 3orld 3ar# with the box coming in se"eral colors and designs. $ut it was only in the 14 !2s that the 0ndustry 5inister o% Japan declared puzzle boxes as /ational Traditional Handicra%t. 0n order %or the boxes to be considered as such# they must satis%y some criteria( The The The The The puzzle box must be manu%actured mainly by hand. puzzle box must ha"e uses in e"eryday li%e. puzzle box must be produced using only traditional techni,ues. puzzle box must be made using traditional materials. Himitsu $ako industry must be regional in nature.