Towel tenugui
A Japanese towel tenugui 手拭い featuring a motif of a fan with clouds and an umbrella. The tenugui is a cloth about 90 cm long and 35 cm wide, usually made of bamboo and printed or dyed with various patterns. Originally, it was used as a bathing accessory, to tie up the hair and wipe the body after bathing. This is also indicated by the name, which combines the words for “hand” te 手 and “wipe” nugui 拭い. Over time, it has become a fashion accessory and is often used as a headband or headdress, especially popular among fighters of traditional kendō martial arts, as it absorbs sweat and provides extra padding under the headdress. It can also be worn as a fashion accessory around the neck and is even suitable for wrapping objects. (NVS)
Material description: bamboo
Manufacturing technique: print
Dimensions: length: 87 cm, width: 32 cm
No. of parts: 1
Current owner: Celje Regional Museum
Date of the last acquisition: 1957–60
Last acquisition method: donation (donated by Thea Schreiber Gammelin)
Previous owners and periods of ownership: Alma M. Karlin, Thea Schreiber Gammelin, Celje Regional Museum
Object condition, handling and damage: well preserved
History of exhibition: Celje Regional Museum, Celje, 16.10.2019–31.5.2020 (exhibition: Azija me je povsem uročila [Asia Utterly Bewitched Me])
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