The Cultural Transmission of Hanamusubi During the Edo Period from the Gender Perspective

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  • 江戸時代にみる花結びの伝承 : ジェンダーの視点から
  • エド　ジダイ　ニ　ミル　ハナムスビ　ノ　デンショウ　ジェンダー　ノ　シテン　カラ

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Hanamusubi [花結び] are ornamental silk knots shaped like flowers or insects and meant to be attached to small bags, and considered as part of Japanese traditional culture. Historical documents indicate that these knots were typically used in both tea and incense practices during the Edo period (1603–1868). While hanamusubi continue to be employed in incense practices today, the use of hanamusubi in the tea ceremony ended during the nineteenth century. In addition, since the late Edo period, hanamusubi have been incorporated into women’s fashion in Japan, particularly as buttons for kimono coats. Scholars of Japanese art and design have examined a range of material culture related to tea and incense practices, but hanamusubi have not been considered in this research. Therefore, this study focuses on the gender perspective, which is often overlooked in traditional craft history research, and aims to clarify how the culture of hanamusubi was fostered and handed down during the Edo period.The investigation revealed that joshiyō ōraimono [女子用往来物], books used by women in the Edo period to learn about the ideal woman, were one of the factors that promoted the discourse of hanamusubi, which records that hanamusubi was employed to present the image of sophisticated women and craft, and used to wish women a safe delivery. In contrast, men acquired knowledge of hanamusubi through secret rituals and passed on their culture through tea and incense practices. These different trajectories of the cultural diffusion of hanamusubi between women and men demonstrates the myriad meanings that are embedded or hidden in the material culture of hanamusubi.

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