About Akama Suzuri
Akama Suzuri are inkstones made from Akama stone quarried in Hikoshima, Shimonoseki City, Yamaguchi Prefecture. Akama stone (Akamaga-seki stone), characterized by its reddish-purple hue, has been used for inkstones since around the Nara period. Its fine-grained stone texture grinds ink smoothly with good ink-releasing quality and beautiful ink gliding, long favored by literati and calligraphers as a high-quality inkstone. Counted among Japan's three great inkstones alongside Tankei and Touka, craftspeople continue to quarry and process the stone in Shimonoseki as a representative traditional craft.
Techniques & Materials
Craft terms are shown in the original Japanese — these are proper names with no standard English equivalents.
Techniques
Materials
Where to see & buy
Workshop names are in Japanese; links go to their official sites.
- 赤間硯（産地にご確認ください）