Kinran(gold brocade) is considered the most gorgeous of the meibutsu-gire. The first syllable of the word, kin, means "gold". the second, ran, refers to cloth that was attached to the hem of a Buddhist cloak to strengthen it.

Kinran has a ground wave of twill and weft patterns woven with either gold thread or threadlike strips of gilded paper. There is a kinran called Kaneji-Kinran which uses gold thread not only in the pattern but in the ground as well, creating a dazzling effect.

Kinran was first made in china during the Song Dynasty. It came to Japan through Sino- Japanese trade at the end of the Fujiwara and Kamakura periods, and began to be made in Japan during the Momoyama period.

In the right frame, from top
Myoshin-Ji Kinran, Kinoshita Kinran, Hanausagi Kinran4, Moegiji Ishidatami Kinran, Shippo Setsugekka Kinran, Ouchikiri Kinran, Kinji Takarazukushi Kinran, Oogeito Kinran, Wakuda Kinran, Noda Kinran, Hitoezuru Chubotan Kinran, Eikando Kakuryu Kinran, Ningyode Tsumugiji Kinran, Daito Kinran1, Daito Kinran2, Itoya Kinran, Kongo Kinran, Hanausagi Kinran1, Moegiji Hanausagi Kinran3, Hanausagi Kinran2, Futarishizuka Kinran, Hariya Kinran, Osaka Kinran, Suminokura Kinran,