Bengara is a red iron-oxide pigment that, together with vermilion, has been used in Japan since ancient times. It is named after Bengal, a region of India that is said to be the birthplace of bengara. It is not only a coloring agent but it also protects the wood from insects and rot. It is said that Fukiya people were at first considering the iron sulfide ore extracted from Yoshioka Copper Mine as a waste and were throwing it away, until one day they accidentally discovered that it could be used to manufacture bengara.
Subsequent discoveries of high-quality iron-sulfide ore mines led to a boom in the bengara industry in Fukiya in the middle of the Edo period (1603-1868). The first ever domestic industry exhibition was held in 1877, during which bengara received a Certificate of Excellence. Fukiya then became famous throughout Japan and was indelibly associated with the earthy red pigment. In its heyday, Fukiya had a flourishing bengara industry with five to six factories in the village, and was one of the leading bengara producing regions in the nation. However, after the end of World War II, bengara or red iron oxide came to be mass-produced as a byproduct during the process of producing chemical fertilizers, and by 1974 Fukiya stopped producing bengara.

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