Case for bowler hat, c. 1890, Unknown English, 9 3/4 × 13 × 11 5/8 in. (24.77 × 33.02 × 29.53 cm) (closed), Leather, metal, silk, England, 19th century, A favorite accessory of well-known Japanese kabuki actors such as Ichikawa Danjurō IX (1838-1903), bowler hats made by the bamboo artist Hayakawa Shōkosai I became fashionable in the Meiji period (1856-1912), a time that saw new exposure to non-Japanese cultures and the transformation of fashion choices. By the late 1800s, urban men had all but abandoned the topknot favored during the preceding Edo period (1603-1868) and were wearing their hair short and covered with hats. The ensemble of a hip Tokyoite around 1890 might consist of a more or less traditional kimono, wooden clogs instead of straw sandals, and a novel bowler hat fashioned from rattan and bamboo.