Edo lacquerware is said to have started when Tokugawa Ieyasu, who entered Edo Castle around 1590, invited lacquer craftsmen from Kyoto. During the time of the fifth shogun, Tsunayoshi (1680-1709), the techniques of lacquering and maki-e were advanced and perfected, and after the Kyoho era (1716-1736) of the eighth shogun, Yoshimune, it became popular as everyday lacquerware used by common people.

Today, a wide variety of products are produced by Edo lacquerware artisans, including low tables, tea ceremony utensils, soba utensils, eel bento boxes, and miscellaneous goods, including earrings, hairpins and other accessories. Compared to other lacquerware production areas, Edo lacquerware is free from traditional constraints, and artisans are continuing to work actively on developing new designs. A new challenge of making lacquerware from glass has also begun.