by J.T. Waite
Published: December 25, 2007
Yosegi / Himitsu-Bako, Japanese Secret Puzzle Boxes
The village of Hakone is located about 100 kilometers east of Tokyo in Kanagawa Prefecture not far from the shores of beautiful Lake Ashi. Dominated by the slopes of Mount Fuji rising in the background, Hakone lies in the heart of a region known for its traditional Japanese handicrafts. It was here that Yosegi, Japan’s centuries old woodworking technique, was born.
Hakone is famous both for its traditional Japanese Yosegi and for Himitsu-Bako, or Japanese Secret Puzzle Boxes, which the International Trade & Industry Minister designated as a Traditional National Handicraft in 1984. And it is from the renowned woodcraft guilds in the area around Hakone that Bene Gifts acquires all of its Yosegi products.
Yosegi is the complex process of repeatedly binding and cutting different colors and species of wood to create elaborate mosaic wood patterns. These patterns are in turn bound and cut into patterns of increasing intricacy. This process is repeated again and again, until a mosaic block is produced. This block is then sliced, shrunk and lacquered, eventually creating the paper thin mosaic wood veneer that is traditionally used to decorate Himitsu-Bako.
Yosegi Making Step by Step
 1. Each piece of different-colored wood is planed to the proper thickness and fastened with glue to make the Yosegi pattern. |
 2. The layered wood is then cut into smaller pieces to fit the Yosegi-specific mold. |
 3. These pieces are tied together and glued into a unit pattern. |
 4. Then this block is cut into several slices to form a larger pattern. |
 5. The cut slices are then glued together again. The resulting plate is called Tanegi. |
 6. This plate is carefully shaved into thin sheets with a special plane. This shaved sheet is called Duku. |
 7. The shaved sheets are shrunk, ironed and applied to the products. |
 8. To add glaze and sturdiness to the surface, a finishingcoat of lacquer is applied. |
Originally created as hiding places for jewelry, coins, and the occasional secret message, Himitsu-Bako boxes date from Japan’s culturally rich Edo Period (1603-1867). They are designed so that they can be opened only by the creator of the box or its owner. Some boxes rely on a secret pressure point or “kannuki” built into the sides or lid of the box to open them, while others require a precise sequence of consecutive moves to release the internal locking mechanism. Without knowing the precise pressure point or the proper sequence of moves the box will remain securely sealed and its contents hidden.
Traditional Japanese Secret Puzzle Boxes range in size from the width of your thumb to over a foot in length and the combinations that unlock them can involve a single precisely executed manipulation or several dozen complex sequential moves. The legendary master craftsman, Yoshio Okiyama, who passed away in March of 2003, is renowned not only for his flawless artistry, but also for making the most complex Secret Puzzle Box of all, a Himitsu-Bako that required 125 different moves to open.
Secret Puzzle Boxes have appeared throughout the world in different cultures. Puzzle boxes can be found in Turkey, Morocco, Poland, Vietnam and as far away as Costa Rico. But Japanese Puzzle Boxes are especially prized by serious collector not only for of their ingeniously clever locking mechanisms, but for the exquisitely complex and uniquely stunning Yosegi veneers that are traditionally used to decorate their exteriors.
Each Yosegi Puzzle Box that we acquire is handcrafted by a traditional master craftsman. The painstakingly precise process for their creation has survived intact for centuries, handed down in strictest confidence from master to apprentice from generation to generation.
Each handmade Yosegi Puzzle Box is a one-of-a-kind creation worthy of inclusion in the most discriminating collection. Many find homes in galleries and museums, and you, to, can give one or more of these boxes a place of prominence in your home or personal collection.
SHOP YOSEGI PRODUCTS: HIMITSU-BAKO / PUZZLE BOXES, HOME DECORATION
