Samurai women wearing head cover

[hitokiri]

Does anyone know why some of samurai women wear head cover?




I also watch taiga drama komyo ga tsuji and yoshitsune, and found this kind of head cover is worn by some high rank samurai women. Is there any rule for wearing this head cover?

I am not sure if this kind of question has been asked here before, but I couldn't find it. so my apology if this is repeated.

thanks in advance
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"It's easy to kill someone with a slash of a sword; it's hard to be impossible for others to cut down."

[Tatsunoshi]

The major reason is that the woman has taken religious vows and shaved her head (usually a woman of status whose husband had died). I'm not sure if this would apply to the woman pictured, though.

[heron]

According to 江戸の四季と暮らし (Edo life in the 4 seasons) (one of the rekishi gunzo series) scarves like this became fashionable from the 18th century as winter wear. This book has a photo of a woman wearing a scarf very similar to the one you posted, except it is only head and shoulders. I think your photo is of typical winter clothing as the woman seems to be wearing a lined kimono, takabageta (high geta for walking through snow and slush) and tabi.

The scarf is called o-kosozukin　お高祖頭巾

As far as I know women covered their head for various reasons - as Tatsunoshi says often if they had taken vows and shaved their heads – maybe in dramas for reasons of secrecy or intrigue, but I think most often to keep warm.

[heron]

I thought I'd seen this image somewhere, but in fact what I'd seen was another very similar one, probably taken in the same studio. Terry Bennet in Early Japanese Images attributes this to Kusakabe Kimbei. This link tells you some more about the o-kosozukin and the colours worn by different age groups.

http://tinyurl.com/np689b

[hitokiri]

[shikisoku]

Women weren't be able to Samurai.
Or do you mean women in Buke?
But the woman in the pictute don't look Buke woman.
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[heron]

The photos are from the 1890s and staged in a studio so they wouldn't be of women of the buke class.

And the only other information I have is from the Edo period.

Shikisoku, do you know anything about head coverings before the 18th century? Or does anyone else?

[JLBadgley]

Not so much in the Edo period.

There were the religious "veils" mentioned, as well as winter wear.

I don't have much on Edo period wear, but earlier you have the ichimegasa with a mushitareginu--I usually refer to it as a bug hat. They were popular in Tang China and made there way over to Japan for women (apparently of the upper class) who were going out and about.

Another type of headgear is the kosode. It may sound odd, at first, but you see many images of women out and about covering themselves with a kosode.

I can't think of much else outside of dance costumes.


-Josh

[hitokiri]

Here is the snapshot from taiga drama Hojo Tokimune.


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"It's easy to kill someone with a slash of a sword; it's hard to be impossible for others to cut down."

[JLBadgley]

I should probably give this link, for any costume questions: http://www.iz2.or.jp

Fabulous site for info on historic clothing of any stripe.

-Josh

[Tatsunoshi]

The Kyoto Costume Museum is indeed a great place. I'm sorry I wasn't around to visit it before it basically just became the centerpiece for the "Tale Of Genji" scale model mansion. Even though I love the display, it looks like it hasn't changed in years, and I'd rather see more of the full size costumes.

[lordameth]

[Tatsunoshi]

[JLBadgley]

The Kyoto Costume museum changes its display each year or two (or has when I've visited), but it has kept the Tale of Genji setting. So, although there's lots of interesting stuff if you are into Heian period stuff, they don't have so much for folks into other periods.

-Josh

[Tatsunoshi]

[JLBadgley]

Actually, both.

They change out the mansion and the full-sized room: the first one with different scenes from Genji and the second with different types of clothing (though all still Heian).

What I'd love to see is for them to do a room with their reproductions throughout history.

-Josh

[shikisoku]

[shikisoku]

As for the post#1.
The head cover is Okosozukin お高祖頭巾 as heron said.
Okosozukin is nothing religious.
It's just a thermal wear.
http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/product/images/4404029837/ref=dp_image_0?ie=UTF8&n=465392&s=books

[Bethetsu]

[heron]

This is certainly how it is used in the book I am currently reading, "Excursions in Identity" by Laura Nenzi, published by University of Hawaii Press. She often uses phrases such as "aristocratic and samurai women". I notice on a quick glance that "Women of the Mito Domain" is subtitled Recollections of samurai family life, and refers to samurai households, but also frequently uses bushi women or women of the bushi class.

I think you are right, Bethetsu, in your analysis

[Hiro Katsumoto]

For some reason when I see a movie with women wearing those scarfs I can't help but think nun. Maybe Buddhist nuns? I had always wondered why they dressed like that.
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I am Honored to meet you-Katsumoto; The Last Samurai.

[Bethetsu]

[Bethetsu]

By the way, can anyone tell me what the nun's veil like those in the Hojo drama is called (in Japanese)? Also, where was the seam? I can't see one.

[Hiro Katsumoto]

Thank you Bethetsu. I would never have known that. I had guessed but I don't get any info on samurai from feudal Japan so I am pretty much clueless.
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I am Honored to meet you-Katsumoto; The Last Samurai.

[shikisoku]

It seems English is confusing Samurai and Buke.
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