Bandori
ばんどり

In Shonai area, Yamagata, when people carried heavy stuff with it on their back, they used a bandori, which worked as cushion between their back and their bag. 

A bandori was made of straw, rope, and string. When they did not carry anything on their back, other people could see it; thus, it had a beautiful pattern. Especially when they carried marriage furniture or things for marriage, they used a beautiful bandori with colorful strings and cloths, which was called iwai bandori (meaning bandori for celebration).

It is said that bandori was named after how it looked; its shape looked like a musasabi or a flying squirrel, which was also called bandori in Yamagata, Hokuriku region, and Gifu.