TOMIOKA SILK MILL

Japan’s first modern silk factory in Gunma Prefecture built in the 19th century by the Meiji Government as a model to be emulated by the private sector. Through the adoption of Western reeling technology, the Tomioka Silk Mill succeeded in improving the productivity and quality of raw silk and training technicians and engineers. It therefore played a vital role in the creation of an export industry and the modernization of Japan after the end of the government’s isolation policy. The mill was closed in the 1980s, but the buildings have been well preserved over the decades, especially the half-Western half-Japanese buildings combining red brick walls, Japanese roof tiles, etc., which received UNESCO World Heritage status. Factory girls (jokō) were recruited from around Japan to work at the mill and shared the techniques learned after their return home. There is a silk woven tapestry hanging on the wall of Aiko’s parents’ home. She knows it was made by her great grandmother but has little idea of the grand drama that took place during her days as a factory girl.