Two women are sitting at a kotatsu, a low, wooden table with a heat source covered by a futon.
One of the women is reading. Next to her is an andon lamp.
It looks really cozy. You can imagine it is a cold day and that there is a little kitten all curled up under the table in the warm comfort of the heater.
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Old Photos of Japan aims to be your personal museum for Japan's visual heritage and to bring the experiences of everyday life in old Japan to you.
To enhance our understanding of Japanese culture and society I track down, acquire, archive, and research images of everyday life, and give them context.
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Kjeld Duits
Reference for Citations
Duits, Kjeld (). 1890s: Women at Kotatsu, OLD PHOTOS of JAPAN. Retrieved on January 30, 2026 (GMT) from https://www.oldphotosjapan.com/photos/218/women-at-kotatsu
Mr. T
I sat in a home in Uwajima during the winter that had one of these. Very warm and comfortable. We just sat around and talked.
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Kjeld Duits (Author)
They truly are wonderful, aren’t they? I would love to move out of my modern apartment into a traditional home, cold, drafty and all, just to enjoy the coziness of the kotatsu.
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