red japanese furoshiki Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga

red japanese furoshiki Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga

Furoshiki (風呂敷) is a traditional Japanese technique for folding a fabric used to transport clothing, gifts, bento, etc. 

It is an eco-friendly way of wrapping what you need to transport and is a perfect replacement for gift wrap.

Its shape is traditionally rectangular but is currently mostly square. They are made of all kinds of fabrics, such as cotton, silk, nylon, etc...  

The size of the furoshiki varies according to the use you want to make of it:

- 45 cm side: to wrap money (festive period or funeral),
- 50 or 52 cm side: for carrying a bento lunch box or wrapping small gifts,
- 68, 70 or 75 cm sides: the most adaptable for gift wrapping,
- 90 cm side: to wrap a bottle, a book or to make a small bag,
- 105 or 118 cm sides: the most adaptable for making bags,
- 128 or 140 cm sides: for packing clothes or making a large picnic basket,
- 150 cm side: for transporting or packing a bulky object,
- 175 or 195 or 230 cm sides: for transporting futons and duvets, for example for a move.

Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga (鳥獣人物戯画, literally "Animal-person Caricatures"), commonly shortened to Chōjū-giga (鳥獣戯画, literally "Animal Caricatures") is a famous set of four picture scrolls, or emakimono, belonging to Kōzan-ji temple in Kyoto, Japan. The Chōjū-giga scrolls are also referred to as Scrolls of Frolicking Animals and Scrolls of Frolicking Animals and Humans in English. Some think that Toba Sōjō created the scrolls; however, it seems clear from the style that more than one artist is involved.The right-to-left reading direction of Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga is traditional in East Asia, and is still common in Japan. Chōjū-jinbutsu-giga is also credited as the oldest work of manga. The scrolls are now entrusted to the Kyoto National Museum and Tokyo National Museum.