THE MEANINGS WOVEN IN
井桁
igeta
A wish for a little one to grow up safe and well.
Well Frame
A child grows →01
Where it comes from
Igeta takes the shape of the character 井, timbers crossed to frame the mouth of a well. The wooden frame itself is called izutsu, and the two names point to nearly the same shape, with izutsu sometimes kept for a true square. It has long been used as a crest, at times with chrysanthemum, tachibana, or wisteria set inside it.
02
On the cloth
In ordinary households, a newborn's first robe was sometimes dyed red or turmeric yellow, or marked with asanoha or izutsu patterns. These were meant to keep harm away and to pray that the baby would grow up safely. An Edo-period kabuki script speaks of a little one's charm bag of red brocade, woven with linked izutsu.
03
To give
Igeta suits a birth, or a baby's first visit to the shrine. It is for someone watching a little one grow, and hoping each day goes safely.
A word to keep
井筒
izutsu
The wooden frame set around the mouth of a well, crossed like the character 井.
Two questions
What does the Well Frame (井桁) pattern mean?
A wish for a little one to grow up safe and well. Igeta suits a birth, or a baby's first visit to the shrine.
Where does the 井桁 pattern come from?
Igeta takes the shape of the character 井, timbers crossed to frame the mouth of a well. The wooden frame itself is called izutsu, and the two names point to nearly the same shape, with izutsu sometimes kept for a true square.
