Ainu Spiral Stud Buttons
The Ainu people (Ainu means "human") are a group of indigenous people who have occupied the northern parts of the Japanese archipelago as well as parts of the Kamchatka peninsula. Hokkaido is currently the primary center of modern Ainu culture. 
 
The Ainu people havve magnificent textile traditions and the stud buttons that make up the Ainu collection are inspired by a visual vocabulary of motifs that Ainu women deploy in improvisational, highly personal designs appliqued and embroidered on traditional robe forms called Atush. 
 
Atush robes were traditionally made from bark fiber, later cotton, elaborately embroidered and appliqued at the hem, cuffs, neckline, front opening and on the back, all areas of the body considered vulnerable.  Ainu motifs, generally, are considered protective and can be combined in many ways. There is a cultural value placed on deploying these basic visual forms in fresh ways to create new, personal, complex visual statements. Ainu women, by adorning their own robes and the robes of their family members, were actively protecting themselves and others from malevolent forces and dangers. Spiral forms represent gentle, flowing energy. 
 
Details
Handmade Fair Trade in Indonesia & the United States
White brass & Leather
Three in a set in a reuseable tin
Spiral stud buttons - 1 inch square
Weight - .1 ounce each