About Ogatsu Suzuri (Ogatsu Inkstone)
Ogatsu Suzuri are inkstones made from slate (phylite) quarried in Ogatsu Town, Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture. Said to have begun in the Muromachi period, stone material cut from Ogatsu's high-quality slate is carefully carved and finished. The fine-grained stone is ideal for grinding ink, and much of the inkstone material used throughout Japan has historically come from Ogatsu. The traditional production technique of individually hand-carving each piece by inkstone craftspeople is still maintained, known as a representative craft of Tohoku's stone-working culture.
Techniques & Materials
Craft terms are shown in the original Japanese — these are proper names with no standard English equivalents.
Techniques
粘板岩切り出し手彫り成形磨き仕上げ
Materials
雄勝産粘板岩（スレート）
Where to see & buy
Workshop names are in Japanese; links go to their official sites.
- 雄勝硯生産販売協同組合（産地にご確認ください）