Shogi pieces craftsman "Kakuhou(隺峯)" made Mikurajima-hon-tsuge (Mikura Island grown boxwood) Tora-fu (tiger spots wood grain) Kinki-syo (Kinki script) mori-age (embossed) Shogi pieces

"Kakuho" studied piece making under "Fugetsu," who is regarded as one of the top five masters of the modern era.
He is a genius who has an anecdote that he "finished all engraved and filled-in piece he was making into "mori-age pieces" after seeing a demonstration of lacquer heaping up by his master, Fugetsu.

In November 2018, pieces made by "Kakuhou" were used in the 3rd game of the 31st Ryuou-sen (Yoshiharu Habu Ryuou vs. Akito Hirose 8-dan), and he is one of the most popular and talented pawnmakers of our time.
The name of the Kakuhou was given by his classmate, calligrapher Daishin Mochizuki, to express the image of a crane flying into the blue sky over a mountain range full of blooming wisteria flowers.
He is still in relentless pursuit of making better Shogi pieces, and is particularly particular about "Urushi (lacquer)," and his creed is to make beautiful pieces with the "lacquer black luster and shine" through repeated research and improvement.

Biography of "Kakuhou".
1952 Born in Tsuru City, Yamanashi Prefecture.
2012 At the "Fuji Koma no Kai" exhibition, he met "Fugetsu" and became a piece maker.
2015 "Monthly Magazine Shogi Sekai" introduced his pieces in the magazine "Shogi Sekai".
2016 The Shogi Federation's calendar cover with a piece made by Fugetsu, a master Shogi maker.
Production piece used in the making of the Kadokawa film "Sei no Seishun" (The Youth of the Sacred).
2017 Appeared in UTYTV's "Yamanashi Imajin" and "News Star Special".
2018 Featured in Asahi Newspaper Yamanashi edition.
Live appearance on YBS Radio "Kicks".
Interviewed by NHK Shizuoka and later aired on the Shizuoka edition of "NHK Special".
Participated in the inspection of pieces for the 3rd game of the 31st Ryuoh Tournament (Yoshiharu Habu vs. Akito Hirose 8-dan) at Kashima Jingu Shrine, where Mikurashima Hon Tsuge Akamasa Kinki-syo pieces were used.
2020 "Rintaru Bikoma/Shogi Piece Exhibition" started at "Museum Tsuru".
Featured in NHK's National Program "Witness Japan" (Japanese only).
"Rintaru Bikoma/Shogi Piece Exhibition" featured in "Monthly Magazine Shogi Sekai April Edition" (Japanese only).
Appearance on NHK National TV Program "Reversing Life" (Japanese only).
 Featured in the spring issue of the quarterly magazine "KOTOBA (Words)" (published by Shueisha) in the article "隺峯/運命に導かれた遅咲の駒師"

'Mori-age-koma' is a piece made by filling the engraved characters with lacquer, and after drying and polishing the surface flat, finishing by using a brush to add more lacquer on top of the engraved lacquer parts to give slightly raised characters.

Mikurajima is an island located in the central part of the Izu Islands (an area with many islands of various sizes) in Tokyo, Japan.
The quality of tsuge grown in the unique soil and climate is perfect for making shogi pieces.
Mikurajima Island is the most highly regarded tsuge producing area along with the Satsuma region of Kagoshima Prefecture, that produces Satsuma tsuge.
The hontsuge grown on Mikurajima Island is the best material for shogi pieces in terms of the color, luster, touch, weight, and texture of the wood.

Tora-fu: "Tora-fu" is a wood grain with a stripe pattern that appears as a band across the vertical grain.
The stripe pattern looks like a tiger's hair, hence the name "Tora-fu"(tiger spots).
The beauty of Tora-fu is not only the beauty of the stripes, but also the fact that the stripes are more shiny and look like tiger fur, which is another reason why Tora-fu is so popular.
Tora-fu is also a sign that the wood is of good quality, as the pattern appears when the wood contains nutrients.

"Kinki-sho calligraphy" is very popular with its long history and dynamic writing.
"Kinki" is a very popular calligraphy style engraved on Shogi pieces.
There is a famous saying among Shogi players, "playing Shogi cannot start without Kinki and cannot end up without Kinki".

• Shogi pieces craftsman "Kakuhou(隺峯)" made Mikurajima-hon-tsuge (Mikura Island grown boxwood) Tora-fu (tiger spots wood grain) Kinki-syo (Kinki script) mori-age (embossed) Shogi pieces
• Shogi pieces in a paulownia flat box


• 1,000 JPY flat rate shipping within Japan, free shipping for purchases totaling 20,000 JPY or more.
  Please bear the actual cost for shipping charges outside Japan.

You may find small knots, burrs, rolled-in bark as all these products are made of natural trees.
There may be some small flaw or scratch, dent, chipping.