A photographic introduction to items from the collection

Hina and dolls associated with Princess Kazunomiya

The Hina Matsuri, or dolls' festival for girls, has been held on the third of March since the beginning of the Edo period. The first mention of the festival in a document is in a diary entry of " O-yudono no Ue no Nikki" dated the fourth of March 1625. The festival was hosted by Tofukumonin Kazuko, wife of Emperor Gomizunoo. The festival had became widespread by the 1640s, though use of the term " hina matsuri" has been put at the beginning of the 18th century, as up until then it had been called " hina asobi" (lit: playing with dolls). The change from a game to a festival represents an increasing formality to the festival which had become more and more elegant. The decoration of hina (lit: emperor and empress dolls) grew more elaborate and various styles were devised. Some styles became highly fashionable, garnering huge support. Some common names for examples of these more popular styles are Kanei-bina, Genroku-bina, Kyoho-bina, Jirozaemon-bina, Yusoku-bina and Kokin-bina.

Hina in the museum's collection that were owned by Princess Kazunomiya belong to the Yusoku-bina style (Figure 1). Literally meaning " court noble doll" , this style refers to dolls dressed in the clothing worn by court nobles and was first made at the end of the 18th century. Because the male dolls in the collection wear clothing called " noshi" in Japanese they are also known as " noshi-bina" . The adoption of prominent eyes and nose in the " hikime- kagibana" style on a profile that protrudes at the bottom of the face conforms with the image of an aristocrat and exudes elegance. Examples of similar styles are noshi-bina and ikan-bina found in the Tokugawa Museum of Art which belonged to Kanehime (1831-1902), the wife of Tokugawa Yoshikatsu from Owari. In a style representative of the end of the Edo period, it appears that they were made by a doll maker who fulfilled demand from the upper classes.

Documents such as " Kazunomiya-sama Onhina Mantome" and " Seikan Innomiya O-soba Nikki" held by the Shoryo Department of the Imperial Household Agency tell us that it was customary for Princess Kazunomiya to send and receive hina from here and there on the third of March. Also, according to " Kazunomiya-sama O-hina Go-dogu (Doll Accessories of Princess Kazunomiya) held at the Cabinet library, Princess Kazunomiya had as many as 15 pairs of dolls in her hina display. Although we know that the princess had many hina, because we have been unable to find materials that tell us about individual details we do not know the background to Princess Kazunomiya acquiring these items or what she did with them. Due to the similarity in fabrication to the hina from the Tokugawa family in Owari, we may well assume that there is a possibility that the Tokugawa family were involved.

In addition to hina and hina accessories, 13 dolls of young children called " Gosho" dolls and two Mitsuori dolls that belonged to Princess Kazunomiya are now housed in the museum's collection.
The Gosho (lit: imperial palace) dolls are dolls of children with very pale and fleshy skin and came into being at the beginning of the 19th century.

Four of the 13 dolls come with boxes, which have inscriptions. Three have inscriptions showing that they were gifted to the princess from her older brother Emperor Komei in 1867. Because Emperor Komei passed away on December 25 the previous year, we know that they were bequeathed when his possessions were distributed. One of the boxes has a different inscription, stating simply that it belonged to Princess Kazunomiya. A comparison between this doll (Figure 2) and the three dolls from Emperor Komei (Figure 3) shows that they feature differing styles. One obvious difference is the expression of the eyes. The three dolls from Emperor Komei have linear comb-shaped eyelids, while the former has gingko nut-shaped eyelids drawn in an arc. The differences in the features are represented in the styles. The remaining nine dolls without boxes all have comb-shaped eyes, and are similar in style to those bequeathed by Emperor Komei. There is a strong possibility that these too were bequeathed by Emperor Komei.

Mitsuori dolls (Figure 4) grew out of Gosho dolls and were made with moveable hands and feet, elbows and knees. They are more true to life than Gosho dolls and the balance between the head and body is similar to that of an actual child. In many of the dolls the noses have nostrils and glass has been inserted in the eyes. It is also possible to change their clothes.

Both come with boxes and we find from the inscriptions that they were indeed bequeathed by Emperor Komei. One of them (on the right side of Figure 4) is wearing a high-quality long-sleeved kimono and there is paper wrapping for the kimono. This wrapping comes from " Echigoya" . Because Echigoya changed its name to the Mitsui Clothing Store in 1895, we may conclude that the kimono was made prior to that time. Also, there is a telephone number on the paper and telephones were first introduced to Japan in 1877. Because Princess Kazunomiya passed away on September 2 1877, it is inconceivable that the kimono was made by her. Nonetheless, even though made for a doll, the elaborate way in which it was made as a genuine child's kimono for a doll and the fact that we know where and when it was made means that it has considerable value as a historical material.

Figure 1: Court noble hina (noshi-bina)

Figure 2: Gosho doll

Figure 3: Gosho dolls
Two of the dolls bequeathed by Emperor Komei

Figure 4: Mitsuori dolls Bequeathed by Emperor Komei

Kazuto Sawada (Art History, Museum Research Department)

Maki-e hina accessories with arabesque peony patterns

ere are about 80 accessories for hina, which in addition to inu-hariko (papier mache puppies), folding screens and paper lanterns are generally divided according to the following categories: furniture, cosmetic accessories, stationery, cups and dishes, musical instruments and toys. The majority are decorated with arabesque designs of peonies on black lacquer. Applique crests of hollyhock are found only on red lacquer coatings applied to boxes for carrying tableware and clothing and accessory boxes. Crafted with a precision that evokes the standard of craft techniques from the end of the Edo period, these accessories are believed to have been made by Nanasawa-ya, a hina doll store located in Ikenohata in the Ueno district of Edo.

Figure A: Three-tiered altar (from left: writing altar, kitchen altar, black altar)

Figure B: Towel rack, mirror stand, comb stand, basin, tissue paper stand and four-handled basin, gargling basin and tooth -dyeing accessories

Figure C: Boxes containing tableware

Figure D: Drinking party accessories made of glass

Figure E: Go board, Japanese chess board and board for the game of Sugoroku (a form of backgammon)

Kaoru Hidaka (Art History, Museum Research Department)