Naruko Kaminokobo has been making paper since the late Edo period. In the countryside of Kiryuu, Ootsu, Shiga Prefecture, it has since been handed down to its current, fourth-generation paper craftsman, Tetsuro Naruko. It has always been dedicated to making handmade paper, made from ganpi plant fibers as a base, collected from the neighboring mountains. The paper industry in Oumi (modern Shiga) dates back to the Tenpyou era of the Nara period, according to the "Record of Buddhist Sculptures" in the Shousouin records. Papermaking from ganpi fibers in the countryside of Kiryuu began in the late 18th century. Families within the prefecture and outside of Kiryuu have been making paper since the Meiji period. At its peak, the industry included 17 households in Kiryuu and 42 throughout the prefecture. However, as the war intensified and Western-style wallpaper became popular, Naruko Kaminokobo became the only house left, in 1940.

During the war, most paper manufacturers were forced to supply paper to the military for items such as blank forms, for example. However, Naruko Kaminokobo was appointed as an official supplier to the Imperial Household Department in 1942, and was thus allowed to devote itself to producing elegant and delicate paper: draft paper for poems, including colored paper and poem cards, for use in the Imperial Court's New Year's poetry reading. That is how highly valued Naruko Kaminokobo's ganpi paper was. Today they have inherited those techniques, using new capabilities as a new challenge. Naruko Kaminokobo's custom-made ganpi paper plays an important role in the restoration of cultural assets at home and abroad.

This paper is used for the restoration of works of art that are regarded as Treasures of the Ancient Nation, such as Heike Noukyou, Shigisan-egi and Hounen Shounin Eden; as documents for the Gendai Ningen Emaki (Illustrated Scroll of Modern Mankind), buried in the grounds of Osaka Castle during the 1970 Osaka World Fair, to be left for 5,000 years; and finally, as paper for the restoration of cultural assets at the British Museum, to name just a few examples of institutional significance. Today, its staff continues to work intensively on developing new products and new possibilities for Japanese paper.

Their paper is produced in small batches. The ganpi fibers that make up their papers are treated with care at every stage of the papermaking process. Their paper craftsmen put their hearts into making it, sheet by sheet. Even during delivery, they pay meticulous attention to packaging the paper. A paper with a velvety, lustrous texture. Strong and thin enough to stand the test of time, yet with a great sense of translucency. Their plan is to continue making ganpi paper, known as the “king of paper,” through ancient and modern times. And we were very lucky to be there…