Kanazawa Gold Leaf Makers Face Uncertain Future Amid Soaring Prices and Declining Demand

Kanazawa, Japan's last remaining gold leaf producing area is struggling to survive due to soaring gold prices and decreasing demand. The cooperative association for the leaf trade and industry in Ishikawa Prefecture notes that the tax-inclusive retail price for gold has risen from about 4,800 yen ($30) a gram in August 2016 to 22,600 yen on Aug. 3 this year.

The process of making gold leaf requires exquisite artisanship and is done by hand using a machine that thumps to flatten the gold sheets into extreme thinness. Goldbeaters insert each zumi between sheets of glassine paper and stack them into a bundle, which is then hammered out via the machine.

The finished leaf is cut at the edges into final, square-shaped products measuring 11 centimeters per side. The leaf has been used to decorate shrines, temples, household Buddhist altars, lacquerware and other products and properties.