Tajima Glass

Founded in Tokyo in 1956 by Matsutaro Tatsuta, Tajima Glass is a historically significant manufacturer that successfully bridged mid-century industrial expansion with traditional Japanese craftsmanship. Unlike many furnaces from the post-war era that eventually ceased operations, Tajima remains active today.

The company is officially designated by the Japanese government as a preserver of traditional Tokyo glassmaking techniques, most notably Edo Glass and the highly complex Edo Kiriko cut glass.

While their traditional Kiriko works remain highly prized domestically, Tajima's international reputation was heavily defined by the global export boom of the 1960s and 1970s. During this period, the furnace directed resources toward producing art glass specifically for the Western market. Their output from this era focused on textured, geometric forms and thick-walled cased glass featuring vibrant, multi-layered colour suspensions.

Because this mid-century output was manufactured primarily for international distribution, the pieces were rarely signed or acid-stamped. Pieces can often be found with distributor labels such as OTK Glass or Shoei Glass.

As these paper labels naturally degraded or were removed over decades of domestic use, unmarked Tajima pieces are now routinely misidentified.

Read more about Japanese glass production here.