YOSHINO, Nara Prefecture—As the winter chill sets in, the production of traditional “washi” paper is in full swing at a historic workshop here. Winter is the best season for paper making ...

That same year, the new Meiji government issued Japan’s first national banknotes, made from Echizen washi. The paper-making division of the Treasury Printing Bureau enshrined the spirit of ...

This labor-intensive process results in a paper that is not ... It’s also used to make various everyday goods like clothes, ...

the art of making washi—Japanese paper—has been practiced for hundreds of years by craftsmen. A lot of effort goes into the whole process, but the final product is quite astonishing—one of ...