edoguro 江戸黒

Lit. Edo black. A black plaster finish applied to the walls of fireproof mud-plastered storehouses *dozō 土蔵, and shops *misegura 店蔵, from the late Edo period onward. The black color was created by adding india ink, bokujū 墨汁, to burnt lime, sekkai 石灰, and crushed oyster shell, kakigarabai 牡蛎殻灰, which was mixed together to produce the white finish commonly seen on the walls of *dozō-zukuri 土蔵造 structures. The black plaster was applied in several coats, each of which was carefully sanded down to an almost glossy black finish. Edoguro seems to have become popular in the city of Edo during the last years of the Edo period, and to have spread to the provincial towns of the Kantō 関東 region.