Farmer's shirt and trousers

This shirt and trousers set is a typical farmer's outfit from the Edo period. Simple in design, the garments would have offered suitable warmth and protection to a wearer engaged in physical tasks about the farm.

The shirt was designed with short sleeves, which would not get in the wearer's way as he worked. Triangular pieces of cloth were added under the armpits for more freedom of movement. The extra long tails would have allowed the shirt to be tucked in to the trousers and not come out when the wearer bent over. The trousers were made like men's formal pants (hakama) but without the pleats in the front and back. Open on either side, they were secured around the waist with a tie band of indigo-dyed cotton cloth.

Both the shirt and the trousers are made of mulberry (kozo) fiber, a common source for material during the Edo period and earlier. The gathering, preparation, and weaving of kozo was labor intensive. This fabric is quite handsome; most importantly to the wearer, however, it was strong and durable.