Matto Town

In the following exhibition you will find stickers on each panel, corresponding to the relevant sections below. 

Feel free to tap the section(s) you wish to view from the menu above. 

N1: The Growth of Matto Town

Matto Town started as a place where markets were occasionally held, and developed into a castle town during the Azuchi-Momoyama Period (1568 - 1600). Even after the fall of Matto Castle, the town continued to develop into one of the leading townships of the region.

During the Edo Period, Matto was thriving from the production and sales of daily goods and farm tools, as well as the trade of silk fabric and agricultural products. Among them, indigo dyeing and rapeseed oil production prospered, and many dye and oil shops lined the streets. This production was possible thanks to the abundance of clean water that flowed across the Tedori River Alluvial Fan, and through the village via water channels.

Pictured is an example of Matto Indigo Dye.

On the floor behind you is a map of Matto from 1647 showing the types of shops that existed. As you can see, it was a thriving town!

• Pink-Purple: Indigo dye shop
• Orange: Oil/wax shop
• Green: Inns, stables, etc.
• Yellow-Green: Various handicraft shops
• Blue: Various food shops

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N2: Matto Dye

Matto Dye is represented most with indigo dye. Typically, hard paper was used to dye patterns onto silk and cotton in a process called katagami some (hard paper dyeing). Also, iron was sometimes added to the dye to make kenbou dye.

It was most prosperous at the end of the Edo Period (1804 - 1830), where there are records of at least 77 tax-paying dye shops. Furthermore, at the time improvements in manufacturing were continuing, and it is said that techniques such as mujisome (plain dye), komonsome (fine patterns), jishirosome (white dye), and various patterns were introduced.

Within dye shops, labour was divided into sections such as arashiya (bleaching), uchiya (processing indigo plants), kataya (applying the pattern), and dekiya (finishing). Furthermore, water channels which flowed through the town were used for washing, and there were many places throughout town for hanging cloth.

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N3: Tsurugi Commerce

Tsurugi is located at the entrance to the Tedori River valley, and as such is blessed with abundant resources from the Mt. Hakusan foothills, acting as a collection point of trade. In 1861, products such as Tsurugi Tobacco, Tsurugi Sake, and Tsurugi Charcoal can be seen as part of the “Kaga Domain Products List,” showing the development of these industries.

Because land is narrow in the Mt. Hakusan foothills, during the Edo Period the production of tobacco was encouraged. The leaves were collected in Tsurugi, and the processed tobacco was sent nation-wide. In 1867 there are records of 190 tobacco farmers, with the late Meiji Period (late 1800s, early 1900s) being the most prosperous time.

Furthermore, Tsurugi hosts two famous shrines: Shirayama Shrine and Kinkengu Shrine, and also had many sake breweries. Tsurugi Sake used high quality rice from Kanazawa, mixed with the clean and cool water of the Tedori River.

Sake from this area is called kikusake, and was the drink of choice of the Maeda Clan feudal lord. There’s also a record of kikusake being gifted to court noble Tokitsugu Yamashina in 1527. Another record from 1691 states that a Mr. Yoneya prospered not only as a brewer of kikusake, but later as a seller of medicine.

Hero Tobacco
Mr. Murai was born in Tsurugi, and went to Kyoto to continue the family trade of his adoptive father who was a tobacco salesman. In 1894 he began selling tabaco which was wrapped in leaves under the brand name “Hero.” It became a big hit, and was considered top class worldwide.

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N4: Tsurugi in the Edo Period

During the Edo Period, Tsurugi was administratively considered a village, however it developed as a trade base between the plains and the Tedori River valley, and numerous handicraft workers and merchants gathered there. At the time 527 houses, with a population of 2,210 was recorded, and infrastructure such as warehouses, water wheels, and message boards existed.

Furthermore, since long ago the Kaga Domain Shrine (Shirayama Hime Shrine) and Kinkengu Shrine existed, thus Tsurugi developed as a monzenmachi – a town with a famous shrine or temple that people travel to pray at, which has lodgings and shops to accommodate these visitors. Throughout the Edo Period it was frequented by the Kaga Domain Feudal Lord Maeda when he came to pray.

On the other hand, since the name “Tsurugi Station” is written in old Edo Period documents, it is also thought to have been a post town listed in the Postal Station System of the late Edo Period.

Tsurugi was a rural town built at the head of the Tedori River Alluvial Fan, and was a small town where people and goods moved between Kanazawa, Nomi, and the Mt. Hakusan foothills. Pictured is a map of Tsurugi from 1785.

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N5: Oil Pressing

Before the invention of lamps or electric lights, rapeseed oil was commonly burned in lanterns to create light.

During the Edo Period, the Tedori River Alluvial Fan was used to grow massive amounts of rapeseed, and Matto was filled with a number of oil processing shops. It was the largest supplier of rapeseed oil in the Kaga Domain.

In Matto, the most laborious procedure of oil processing – the seed crushing procedure – was done using water wheels rather than by hand as pictured. Production was so efficient that Matto produced more than 8 times as much as Komatsu, and was able to supply almost all of Kanazawa’s oil demand – which at the time was Japan’s third largest city after Osaka and Kyoto.

The ruling Kaga Clan placed great importance on the squeezing of the rapeseed oil, and appointed a specific town official to examine the oil, control the quality, and stabilize the price.

Rapeseed Oil Production:

Virgin Oil:
Drying → roasting → crushing → steaming → squeezing

2nd to 4th Squeeze:
Crushing → roasting → steaming → squeezing

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N6: Water Wheels

Matto’s first water wheels were built in 1640 after several townspeople travelled to southern Kyoto and copied the mechanism of the water wheels they saw there. Rather than keep the knowledge to themselves, they taught others as well.

From 1781 to 1788, more and more water wheels were built along the two water channels that pass through Matto. At the peak of rapeseed production, the eastern channel had 12, and the western channel had 7 water wheels built. Even through the Meiji Period which saw a decrease in the demand for rapeseed oil, Matto still had 25 water wheels, but they were used instead for polishing rice.

Factories were built on either side of the water channel, and a single water wheel powered 2 – 6 oil shops at the same time. Below you can see some of the tools used in rapeseed oil production, such as oil buckets and the gears from water wheels.

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N7: Edo Period Villages

Hideyoshi Toyotomi – a famous feudal lord – healed the turmoil of the Sengoku Period and unified Japan. He developed a class system, demanding the separation of soldiers and farmers, and the disarming of farmers. He also conducted nationwide land surveys, examining the area of land and its productivity (value), as well as the amount of rice grown.

Since tax was determined on a village by village basis, a strong bond was formed among the farmers who made up the village.

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N8: Control of Farming Villages

After retiring, Toshitsune Maeda, the third lord of the Kaga Domain, entered Komatsu Castle and began reforming the agricultural system. This was to stabilize tax collection by fixing the tax rate, as well as to stop the direct control of farmers by samurai, and to strengthen the centralized system of the clan. Another measure to improve the system appointed a new magistrate for crop reforms using village officials.

It is said that farmer’s lives were particularly difficult due to the strict implementation of crop reforms throughout Ishikawa-gun (a former district covering some of current Kanazawa, and a large part of current Hakusan City).

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N9: Village “Seals”

A village seal was not a seal but rather a document regarding tax that was given to each village. They were developed in 1656 as a result of agricultural reforms (see previous exhibition). In 1670 the documents were collected, revised and reissued. Each document contained the stamp of the Kaga Domain lord, so they were considered very important to villages. Pictured is an example of the village seal from Yokoe Village, stamped on the left with the lord’s seal.

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N10: Village Officials

Village Officials called tomura controlled a group of 10 to 40 villages. Tomura were at the centre of the Kaga Domain’s agricultural control system, especially following the agricultural reforms (see N8).

Tomura had a great deal of authority and their duties covered a wide range of areas, from administration, policing, judiciary work, and the collection of taxes. They were also in charge of promoting agriculture, such as developing new rice fields and compiling agricultural books.

Beneath tomura were the village governors, who were in charge of a single village, and had authority to oversee all matters such as personnel, agricultural affairs, tax payments, etc. They received instruction from the tomura (and thus the magistrate) regarding important matters, but had authority to take care of any village-only matters.

Pictured is the gate of a former tomura house.

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N11: Agricultural Books

In the Kaga Domain, agricultural books (books regarding agricultural technology) were actively written by tomura village officials.

The oldest known agricultural book is Koka Shunju (Cultivation Spring and Autumn), written in 1707 by Matasaburo Tsuchiya, the tomura of Gokuden Village, Ishikawa-gun. It had great influence as a must-read book for tomura. He also wrote other excellent books such as “A Personal History of Farming” and “Agricultural Illustrations”.

Another book he wrote is “Compendium of Cultivation” which systematically clarifies the annual work of farmers.

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N12: Village Governor Drums and Water Flags

Drums and water flags represent the close ties of the villagers.

A large drum was hung by the front eaves of the village governor’s house and was used to communicate with the villagers. The drum would be used for calling congregations, announcing Buddhist affairs, or to announce emergencies such as fire and flooding.

The water flag was used in times of emergency, such as during a fire, as a visual cue.

Drum Strike Patterns:
Different strike patterns represented different meanings. In the east of Matto, the following patterns were used:

• Call a gathering:
  For when the village governor wishes to call a gathering of the villagers.
  Gooooong Gooong Goong　Gong Gong Ta　Ta　Ta
  This would be repeated 3 times, finishing with two short strikes.
• Call a messenger:
  To call for a messenger to come take a message from the village governor.
  Goooong x3
• Prayer announcement:
  To announce the start of a Buddhist prayer.
  Goooong x6
• Funeral announcement:
  To announce a funeral.
  Goooooong x4　last strike left open
  To announce the funeral of an elderly person.
  Goooooong x6　last strike left open
  These strikes are very drawn out, and the last strike is left open to resound.
• Emergency:
  To announce a fire or other emergency:
  Ta Ta Ta　Ta Ta Ta　Ta Ta Ta

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N13: New Rice Field Development

In the middle of the Edo Period, tomura such as Yosoemon, and Rokuzaemon (father and son) from Murai Village, and Rokuroemon from Fukudome Village played leading roles in the development of new rice fields.

From 1718 to 1726, development was carried out in Mizushima Village and 6 other villages in the Nakajima Water Channel basin (current Ishikawa). In 1721, coastal dunes were cultivated, and rice fields with a total annual production capacity of approximately 101 tonnes were opened in Tokumitsu South, Tokumitsu North, Sogo, Sogoshin, Takematsu, Kurabe, and Hatta. Furthermore, Muraishin Village was built with rice fields with an annual production capacity of 85 tonnes. Of these, it is said that cultivating Tokumitsu North was especially difficult.

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N14: Owners of Farmland

Farmers in the Edo Period were split into two groups, “honhyakusho” farmers who owned land and paid annual taxes, and “atamafuri” farmers who did not own land but worked in the fields.

The graphs on the panel show the compositional transition of the village of Yokoe. In 1684 there were as little as 25 farmers who owned land, yet they each produced roughly 10,400kg of rice per year. This is a substantial amount, and it was likely a large operation encompassing large numbers of servicemen, commoners, peasants, and atamafuri farmers.

However following tax stabilisation reforms (see N8), in 1693 these kinds of large operations gradually ceased, and the Kaga Domain began allowing the sales and purchase of farm land. Thus the peasants and atamafuri farmers who were actually farming the land were now allowed to become the owners of the land. Furthermore, the land ownership was regularly reassigned.

Top Graph:
You can see the number of farming families in Yokoe village, and how many paired bales of rice (roughly 150kg) they were each able to produce. The Y axis is the number of families, and the X axis is the number of paired bales. The blue/purple bars represent peasant farmers in 1889, the yellow represents commoners in 1889, and the green represents honhyakusho farmers in 1684. As you can see, in 1684 (green) there were very few families, and some grew huge amounts of rice. Whereas in 1889, there are many families growing only small amounts of rice each.

Second Graph:
This graph shows the change in the number of atamafuri farmers (blue/purple), commoners (yellow), and land-owning honhyakusho farmers. The Y axis shows the number of families. The X axis is the year, showing 1616, 1670, 1684, 1693, 1708, 1750, and 1876. As you can see, gradually the number of land-owning honhyakusho farmers increases, and non-landowning atamafuri farmers decreases.

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