Not just dolphins. The treasures of Mikura Island: ‘boxwood’ and ‘mulberry.

I accompanied a visitor from overseas who said, “I want to go to Kappa-bashi in Tokyo to buy Japanese tableware,” and so I went there for the first time in a while.

I’d heard the rumors that the whole town is becoming more and more geared toward inbound tourists, and it was true.

It’s long been said that “Japanese knives are high quality,” and it’s well known that many celebrity chefs overseas use them, so I can understand why people would want to buy knives. But what surprised me was how many people were buying large plates and bowls—the kind of bulky, heavy, fragile items that make me think, “Are you really going to pack that in your suitcase and take it all the way back home?”

Personally, when foreign visitors ask me about souvenirs from Japan, I usually recommend good quality chopsticks since they’re light, easy to carry, and using those them in everyday life brings back memories of the trip where they were bought.

And sure enough, I even noticed a specialty chopstick shop called 'Hashi-fuji' that seems to have opened recently for the inbound crowd.

Entrane of Hashi-fuji

When I stepped inside, I found a special corner right in the center of the shop featuring chopsticks made from Mikura Island’s boxwood and mulberry!

They kindly have a map to show where the island is located

Mikura Island in the Izu Islands is a tiny island with a population of about 300.

For over 20 years, every summer, I traveled there to run nature programs where people could swim with wild dolphins—a tradition that began for me some 30 years ago.

Nowadays, Mikura Island is famous for the wild dolphins that are seen around the island. However, before people like me (and the wider public) started paying attention to the dolphins, the island was actually known for its spring water and high-grade timber.

Boxwood (tsuge) is slow-growing, which makes the wood dense, hard, and durable. It has long been famous as a material for hanko (personal seals).

It’s also used to make shogi (Japanese chess) pieces, and it’s said that top masters have chosen pieces crafted from Mikura Island’s boxwood.

Unfortunately, the forestry industry on the island declined after cheap wood started being imported from overseas and plastic and resin began replacing wood in many uses, but the islanders have continued to manage the forest—harvesting mature trees, processing and storing the timber, planting new saplings—so that the forest can renew itself.

That’s why I had always hoped the value of the island’s boxwood and mulberry would one day be recognized again, helping sustain its forests.

So I was deeply moved to see chopsticks made from these very woods being properly showcased in a specialty shop.

The price, however, was nearly ¥10,000 to more than ¥10,000 per pair.

At that level, maybe only overseas visitors who are benefiting from the weak yen could afford them.

What’s more, the designs don’t have the flashy “Oh, Japan!” exotic patterns that foreigners often like—they’re actually quite understated. So I thought only true connoisseurs would buy them..... but surprisingly, the mulberry chopsticks were marked “Sold Out – Awaiting Restock.”

I wonder—are they being bought by Japanese customers who understand their rarity? Or by overseas tourists in this yen-cheap boom, thinking, “Let’s just buy the most premium thing available.”

Looking at the shop’s website, I learned:

• “It all began in 1910, when chopsticks made of Yoshino cedar were brought from the Yoshino region of Nara to sell in Yoshiwara, Tokyo’s red-light district.”

• “We sell disposable chopsticks, wooden chopsticks, and lacquered chopsticks made by Japan’s forests and Japanese artisans.”

So it wasn’t a new shop opened recently just for inbound tourists—my mistake!

As for mulberry (kuwa), I once saw on a TV program about Edo (old Tokyo) woodworking that Mikura Island’s mulberry, known as shima-kuwa (island mulberry), is considered the finest grade of material for Edo sashimono (wood joinery) furniture.

I’ve even heard islanders say:

• “Before cheap wood started coming in from overseas, our island’s boxwood and mulberry sold for such high prices that it was the richest island in the Izu chain.”

• “The port of Habu on Oshima Island was built with money lent from Mikura Island.”

Souvenirs are supposed to be things that come from that region or country—something unique to the land, however, nowadays, so many so-called “local souvenirs” are mass-produced cheap items made in developing countries, or foods packed with preservatives so they can survive long shelf lives after being manufactured in faraway factories.

It always saddens me to see how many people buy these without question, saying “This is a souvenir from XX!” or “A souvenir from Japan!”

That’s why I truly admire shops like this one that have a clear philosophy.

I always want to support stores and people like them.

At home, we also have three pairs of mulberry chopsticks, generously given to us by an islander who said, “These are made from Mikura mulberry—take them for your family.” They are probably the most valuable tableware we own.

chopsticks made of the island's mulberry tree and a dolphin made of the island's boxwood made by an islander

Being ordinary folk, we usually keep them tucked away because they feel “too precious to use.” But we do bring them out when serving important guests. So if you ever visit our home and are given these chopsticks, please take it as a sign that you are being treated as a VIP.

Japan is a country of forests, a nation with a culture built on the use of wood.

True national resilience does not come from covering everything in concrete, but from properly caring for our mountains and woods.

These days, when you can buy almost anything at a 100-yen shop, I still want to stay mindful that even something as simple as a pair of chopsticks—if chosen as one made from domestic wood by Japanese artisans—contributes to protecting our mountains and forests, nurturing our water, and carrying on the culture of using wood.