Heian Costume for Women. The following slides are a brief look into the typical costume worn by women during the Heian Era

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Lauren Hunt
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1 Heian Costume for Women The following slides are a brief look into the typical costume worn by women during the Heian Era

2 Karaginu-mo (Juni-hitoe) Costume Museum, Kyoto Karaginu-mo is the more accurate term for a court lady s formal robes in 11 th Century Heian Japan. Commonly referred to as junihitoe, the characteristic of the costume lies in the stacking of the colors (kasane no irome) made visible at the bottom of the costume, at the collar, and at the armholes by the progressive shift of each layer (Sugino, 2002) The juni-hitoe embodied many of the most important values in Heian Japan. The painstakingly selected colors of the many layers symbolized elements from the natural world, such as the natural beauty of the maple tree or the iris. Each color scheme was only to be worn during the appropriate season or special occasion, such as certain festivals. To wear the a color out of season, or even to get the color wrong for one of your layers, was to invite mockery from other women and brought embarrassment on the woman who erred (Morris, 1994).

3 The Karaginu-Mo (Juni-Hitoe) consisted of the following articles of clothing: Kosode - (Short sleeve) Traditional robe style of Heian Japan. It is also the term for the undergarment of both women and men s clothing. Karigino - Chinese styled jacket worn over the Uwagi and Mo for formal occasions. Traditionally lined, and the collar folded out. Uwagi The top layer uchigi. Sometimes when of higher rank it could have simple embroidery patterns woven into the cloth and/or stamped. Uchigi - The outside uchigi was called uwagi and the ones worn under it were called kasane-uchigi. The highest ranked court ladies could wear patterned silk; the ordinary court ladies wore unpatterned waves similar to modern habutae. They were also called the itsutsuginu or kinu. Hitoe - Type of underwear, sometimes referred to as the chemise, worn beneath the uchigi and over the kosode and hakama or nagabakama. It is the first visible layer. Nagabakama - (divided skirt) Formal version of hakama worn by court women. Mo - Train or apron-skirt worn over the juni-hitoe for formal occasions. It was considered very formal and was required of women of the court while on official duty

4 The Layering effect is one of the most important aspects of the Juni-hitoe. While almost all of the robes are the same lengths and width, how they are layered plays a very important part in the over all look.

together and often either embroidered or painted.

5 The Mo is one of the most elegant accessories worn with the Juni-Hitoe. Pleated at the top much like hakama are (the split-skirt pants) it is 4-6 panels of fabric sew together and often either embroidered or painted. (Shikibu et al, 2003) The sash could be a simple as a border-dyed band to this more intricate lined band with a braid woven in and out of it for added decoration.

6 The motif design usually represented the wearer s office of state, family significance, location or even their favorite flora and fauna (Dalby, 2005).

It also has a small braid woven through it for decoration.

7 This Mo has an embossed and embroidered sash. But otherwise very similar painted images on the apron. It also has a small braid woven through it for decoration. This technique is something we ve found very common in the clothing of both men and women of the Heian Court. (Sei, 1991)

8 Here we have a close up detail of the motifs used on our two examples of a Mo. Both have very traditional themes of the time.

9 The next set of pictures give examples of some of the color choices women of the Heian era might have worn. Pine Tree colors - All season wear (because the pine tree is evergreen and unchanging)

10 Maple colors - Autumn wear Chrysanthemum - Autumn wear

11 Apricots Beneath the Snow Winter Wear

12 Citrus Early Summer Apricot Early Spring

14 And our first attempt at a Heian Lady s Court Dress: Karaginu-mo

15 Acknowledgements Much thanks to Kat Crimson Griffin for her photos from the Kyoto Costume Museum and to the Museum for the incredible effort of presenting this time period to the public. To Gille, Sakada and Kaede for the inspiration, and encouragement during this project.

16 Works Cited Bryant, A. E. o. E. (2004). Sengoku Daimyo Homepage: Costume Museum, I. (2009). Costume Museum, Kyoto (Japanese Version): FUYUya (2008). HEIAN Kasane no irome: Dalby, L. C. (2001). Kimono: Fashoning Culture. Seattle and London, University of Washington Press. Dalby, L. C. (2005). Life and Culture: Harvey, S. M. (2009). Juni-hito Sytles of Heian Era Japan: Morris, I. (1994). The World of the Shining Prince: Court Life in Ancient Japan, Kodansha International. Shikibu, M., Izumi Shikibu, and Sarashina (2003). Diaries of Court Ladies of Old Japan. Mineola, New York, Dover Publications, Inc.

THE CLOTHING OF A HEIAN LADY, PATTERNING & CONSTRUCTION OF THE BASICS BY: Jahan Ara amat al-hafeeza al-sayyidaefendi (THL)

THE CLOTHING OF A HEIAN LADY, PATTERNING & CONSTRUCTION OF THE BASICS BY: Jahan Ara amat al-hafeeza al-sayyidaefendi (THL) MONO NO AWARE- BEAUTY IS PRECIOUS BECAUSE IT IS BRIEF. Typically, when someone