Handelmij Hendrik Makassar — Vintage Japanese Matchbox Label Sling Bag | Dutch East Indies Archive

The Story

A rooster. A revolver. A trading company in Makassar.

This is one of the most extraordinary labels in the entire Ichinichi archive — and one of the most historically dense. Printed in Japan for Handelmij Hendrik, a Dutch trading house operating out of Makassar in the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia), the label carries Chinese characters beneath the city name, a testament to the layered commercial world of colonial Southeast Asia where Dutch merchants, Japanese printers, Chinese traders, and local markets all intersected on a single matchbox.

The rooster and revolver combination — bold, surreal, completely matter-of-fact — is exactly the kind of graphic confidence that made pre-war Japanese label printing unlike anything produced anywhere else in the world. Against the mustard yellow of this bag, the crimson label hits like a vintage poster.

Who This Is For

For the serious collector of Japanese vintage and Asian export ephemera. For the history enthusiast who knows what Makassar means. For the streetwear-adjacent dresser who wants a carry that is genuinely one of a kind — because no modern designer would ever think to put a Dutch East Indies rooster-and-revolver label on a mustard yellow sling bag. And yet here we are, and it works perfectly.

About the Collection

Every design in the Ichinichi Collection is drawn from a personal archive of original Japanese matchbox labels spanning 1880 to 1940. The Dutch East Indies export labels are among the rarest in the collection — commissioned by European trading houses, printed in Japan, distributed across the Indonesian archipelago, and almost entirely lost to history. This is one of the survivors.

How to Carry It

Three zippered compartments for keys, wallet, phone, camera, and daily essentials. Adjustable strap with D-ring attachment on either side for left or right shoulder carry. Cross-body or single-shoulder — built for wherever the day takes you.

Product Details

• Dimensions: 14.5" (L) × 9" (W) × 4" (H)
• Material: 100% polyester
• Compartments: 3 zippered compartments
• Hardware: Durable plastic D-rings, zipper closure
• Strap: Adjustable, reversible left/right carry
• Color: Mustard yellow with black hardware — the crimson and pink label graphic pops with maximum vintage energy