LITMIR.BIZ

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      Long after the embassies themselves had passed by, the towns continued to commemorate these events with parades and floats (Chōsen-yama) in the Korean mode at their annual round of festivals. Residents of the Takeshima-cho section of Ōgaki, one of the principal cities along the Chōsen-jin kaido, were particularly noted for their annual re-creation of the Korean embassy, going so far as to order special textiles from the Nishijin section of Kyoto based on sketches of Korean costumes that the residents had made during the passing of actual embassies. Similarly in Edo, during the San'nō Festival, residents of the Kojimachi area adjacent to Hie-jinja Shrine where the San'nō deity is housed, reformulated the Korean embassies, complete with pennants and sedan chairs, but with the added novelty of a giant elephant float. Although the elephant bore no direct relationship to the embassy, its inclusion by the residents of Kojimachi insured fame and notoriety for their contribution to the San'nō festivities.

      The standing figure on page 59, while very much a gosho-ningyō in terms of its round face and small, centered features, including a mizuhiki presentation ribbon elaborately painted on its forehead, is very much an ishō-ningyō in terms of its intent and execution. The long-sleeved outer coat decorated with a dark ribbon-like fringe and long trailing front tie belt evoke a feeling of "foreign-ness." Not based on any actual country's fashion, attire such as this captured what the public thought a foreigner might wear. The broad-rimmed cap, painted with abstract designs and topped by a small chirimen silk crepe-covered knob, is the artists interpretation of a Korean kat, a wide-rimmed horsehair woven hat that was worn by Korean dignitaries and members of the Korean mission to Japan. Although large-scale standing ningyō of this subject are very rare, smaller seated versions depicting gosho clad only in a haragake bib, but wearing this signature cap, appear with some frequency, indicating a certain popularity of this form among ningyō makers and the buying public at the time.

      In addition to the textiles, the physical elements of the figure itself cleverly point to its origins in the parade of Chōsenjin. The left leg is slightly forward, creating an impression of forward movement. This sense of movement is further accentuated by the slight bend at the waist. The display base, rather than being of finished lacquer, is made of sand and dirt sprinkled over glue on a plain wooden base, the gravel-like effect deftly simulating the surface of the Chōsen-jin kaido itself. The right hand, though empty now, possibly originally held aloft the dragon flag (hiyōngmyonggi) of the Korean emperor or the Chōsenjins signature banner that read in Korean "ch'ongdo" (Jp. seidō), literally meaning "clear the way." Both of these figure prominently in many of the painted images of the Korean missions to Japan executed during the Edo period, such as the celebrated hanging scroll by Hanegawa Tōei in the Kobe City Museum commemorating the 1748 Korean mission to Edo.

      Mitate Gosho-ningyō: Matsuo Bashō

      In 1689, the haiku poet Matsuo Bashō (1644-94) began his celebrated thirty-month journey to explore the oku or "deep beyond" of Japan. His poems and recollections of his travels were compiled in journals and published under the title Oku no hosomichi (The Narrow Road to the Deep North). This was not his first traveling experience, but the last of five and his most celebrated. Basho found the sights seen and the individuals encountered inspiring to his poetry, evoking deep feelings and poignant sentiments.

      Historically, many of Japan's most famous poems were linked to specific places. So intertwined did these places (uta-makura) become with the poems associated with them, that the physicality of the locale was often secondary to the memory of the poem it originally elicited. Basho's travels into the remoteness of Japan were actual, but they were also symbolic of his own spiritual journey. The journals he kept on each of his travels, with significant later amendments, and the poems he composed en route indicate the power of his experiences.

      Bashō's writings also captured the imaginations of Japanese who longed to travel and see their country but were unable to do so for various reasons, including the physical difficulties involved, the financial hardships such travel entailed, and the governmental permission required to undertake such a journey, crossing from one territory to the next, each separated by security posts.

      Interestingly, the first haiku poem included in Oku no hosomichi makes reference to ningyō, or specifically hina.

kusa no to mo	Even a thatched hut
sumikawam yo zo	May change with a new owner
hina no ie	Into a doll's house

      The "thatched hut" refers to Basho's own humble cottage in Edo, planted in front with a banana tree from which he took his sobriquet "Bashō." Leaving his own home for the rigors of the road, life inside the banana hut would undoubtedly change as a new family moved in, perhaps one with daughters who would decorate the interior with hina-ningyō for the third month Hina-matsuri doll festival.

      Bashō is something of an unusual subject for mitate gosho and I am unaware of any other example. The mitate gosho of Basho depicted at right has him attired in the clothes of a well-dressed Edoite. His sleeveless jacket is made from a green satin weave with figured dragon roundels. His kimono is a rich plaid with black velvet trim. On his feet are black velvet tabi socks. On his head rests his signature cap made of purple silk. Dangling from the obi tie belt at his waist is a lacquered inro medicine box secured with a round manjū-style netsuke. A fan with lacquered ends is tucked into the front of his kimono, rounding out his accessories. The staff in his right hand is replaced, but evokes the walking stick that would have most assuredly accompanied him on his lengthy journey undertaken largely on foot. His eyes are very highly rounded on the top and flat on the bottom, indicating an early to mid-nineteenth century date of manufacture. He is carved out of solid wood with no flexibility to the arms and legs.

      Mitate gosho-ningyō: Matsuo Bashō

       Edo period, 19th century

       Height 141/2 inches

       Ayervais Collection

      Mitate gosho-ningyō:

       Sumō wrestler pair

       Edo period, 19th century

       Height 111/2 inches

       Ayervais Collection

      Mitate Gosho-ningyō: Sumō Wrestler Pair

      Two men coming together in close combat to resolve conflicts and establish the right to rule, such are the origins of sumō. The eighth-century Kojiki (Records of Ancient Matters), the earliest official history of Japan compiled in 712, states that possession of the land by the gods was determined through a test of strength held on the shores of Izumo next to the Japan Sea between Takemikazuchi-no kami and Takeminakata-no-kami: "Takeminakata came bearing a tremendous boulder on his fingertips, and said: 'Who is come to our land and is talking so furtively? Come, let us test our strength; I will first take your arm.' When [Takemikazuchi] allowed him to take his arm, he changed it into a column of ice, then again changed it into a sword blade. At this point [Takeminakata] was afraid and drew back."

      When Takemikazuchi demanded the right to grasp Takeminakata's arm, the record states that it was "like taking hold of a young reed," easily crushed. In fear, Takeminakata tried to flee. When pursued and captured, he cried, "I will yield this Central Land of the Reed Plains in accordance with the commands of the offspring of the heavenly deities." The gods, represented by Takemikazuchi, were victorious. In a bloodless rite, hegemony by the divine race was established, initiating at the same time the divine lineage of the emperor, which traces its origins back to the victorious Takemikazuchi.

      Although the contest bore little resemblance to the sumō of today, this mythical combat has been taken as the origins of sumō, defining its divine origin and its historical place within Japan. Thus, from time immemorial, sumō has been considered in Japan a sport and a rite of national importance. Performed

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