List of National Treasures of Japan (writings: Japanese books)
Encyclopedia
The term "National Treasure
" has been used in Japan to denote cultural properties
since 1897,
although the definition and the criteria have changed since the introduction of the term. The written materials in the list adhere to the current definition, and have been designated National Treasures according to the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties that came into effect on June 9, 1951. The items are selected by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
based on their "especially high historical or artistic value".
Writing was introduced from Korea to Japan around 400 AD (in the form of Chinese books), with work done in Chinese by immigrant scribes from the mainland.Korea and China. Literacy remained at an extremely marginal level in the 5th and 6th centuries, but during the 7th century a small number of Japanese scholar-aristocrats such as Prince Shōtoku
began to write in Chinese for official purposes and in order to promote Buddhism. By the late 7th century, reading and writing had become an integral part of life of some sections of the ruling and intellectual classes, particularly in government and religion. The earliest extant large-scale works compiled in Japan are the historical chronicles Kojiki
(712) and Nihon Shoki
(720). Other early Japanese works from the Nara period
include biographies of Prince Shōtoku, cultural and geographical records (fudoki
) and the Man'yōshū, the first anthology of Japanese poetry
. Necessarily all of these works were either written in Chinese or in a hybrid Japanese-Chinese style and were modeled on Chinese prototypes. The development of a distinct Japanese script (kana
) in the 9th century was the starting point of the classical age of Japanese literature
and led to a number of new, uniquely Japanese genres of literature, such as tales (monogatari
) or diaries (nikki
). Because of the strong interest and support in literature of the Heian
court, writing activities florished particularly in the 10th and 11th centuries.
This list contains books of various type that have been compiled in Classical and early Feudal Japan. More than half of the 68 designated treasures are works of poetry and prose. Another large segment consists of historical works such as manuscripts of Kojiki and Nihon Shoki; the rest are books of various type such as dictionaries, law books, biographies or music scores. The designated manuscripts date from 9th century Heian period to the Edo period
with most dating to the Heian period. They are housed in temples, museums, libraries or archives, universities and in private collections.
The objects in this list represent about one third of the 223 National Treasures in the category "writings". They are complemented by 56 Chinese book National Treasures and 99 other written National Treasures.
, is reflected in ancient and classical Japanese literature
from the 7th to 13th century. This process also caused unique genres of Japanese literature to evolve from earlier works modelled on Chinese prototypes. The earliest traces of Japanese literature date to the 7th century and consist of Japanese verse (waka
) and poetry written in Chinese by Japanese poets (kanshi
). While the latter showed little literary merit compared to the large volume of poems composed in China, waka poetry made great progress in the Nara period
culminating in the Man'yōshū, an anthology of more than 4,000 pieces of mainly tanka ("short poem") from the mid-7th to mid-8th centuries. Until the 9th century, Japanese language texts were written in Chinese character
s via the man'yōgana writing system, generally using the phonetic value
of the characters. Since longer passages written in this system became unmanageably long, man'yōgana was used mainly for poetry while classical Chinese was reserved for prose. Consequently the prose passages in the Man'yōshū are in Chinese and the Kojiki
(712), the oldest extant chronicle, uses man'yōgana only for the songs and poems.
A revolutionary achievement was the development of kana
, a true Japanese script, in the mid to late 9th century. This new script enabled Japanese authors to write more easily in their own language and led to a variety of vernacular prose literature in the 10th century such as tales (monogatari
) and poetic journals (nikki
). Japanese waka poetry and Japanese prose reached their highest developments around the 10th century, supported by the general revival of traditional values and the high status ascribed to literature by the Heian
court. The Heian period (794 to 1185) is therefore generally referred to as the classical age of Japanese literature. Being the language of scholarship, government and religion, Chinese was still practiced by the male nobility of the 10th century while for the most part aristocratic women wrote diaries, memoirs, poetry and fiction in the new script. The Tale of Genji
written in the early 11th century by a noblewoman (Murasaki Shikibu
) is according to Helen Craig McCullough
the "single most impressive accomplishment of Heian civilization".
Another literary genre called setsuwa
("informative narration") goes back to orally transmitted myths, legend
s, folktales, and anecdote
s. Setsuwa comprise the oldest Japanese tales, were originally Buddhist influenced, and were meant to be educational. The oldest setsuwa collection is the Nihon Ryōiki
(early 9th century). With a widening religious and social interest of the aristocracy, setsuwa collections were compiled again in the late 11th century starting with the Konjaku Monogatarishū
The high quality of the Tale of Genji influenced the literature into the 11th and 12th centuries. A large number of monogatari and some of the best poetic treatises were written in the early Kamakura period
(around 1200).
(lit. "Japanese poem") or uta (song) is an important genre of Japanese literature. The term originated in the Heian period to distinguish Japanese-language poetry from kanshi
, poetry written in Chinese by Japanese authors. Waka began as an oral tradition
, in tales, festivals and rituals,Traces of ancient poems of courtship and praise for the ruler survive in the Kojiki
, Nihon Shoki
and Man'yōshū. and began to be written in the 7th century. In the Asuka
and Nara periods, "waka" included a number of poetic forms such as tanka, chōka ("long poem"), bussokusekika
, sedōka ("memorized poem") and katauta ("poem fragment"), but by the 10th century only the 31-syllable tanka survived. The Man'yōshū, of the mid-8th century, is the primary record of early Japanese poetry and the first waka anthology. It contains the three main forms of poetry at time of compilation: 4,200 tanka, 260 chōka and 60 sedōka; dating from 759 backwards more than one century.The Man'yōshū also consists of a small amount of Chinese poetry (kanshi
) and prose (kanbun
).
The early 9th century, however, was a period of direct imitation of Chinese models making kanshi the major form of poetry at the time. In the late 9th century, waka and the development of kana
script rose simultaneously with the general revival of traditional values, culminating in the compilation of the first imperial waka anthology, the Kokinshū, in 905. It was followed in 951 by the Gosen Wakashū; in all seven imperial anthologies were compiled in the Heian period. The main poetic subjects were love and the four seasons; the standards of vocabulary, grammar and style, established in the Kokinshū, dominated waka composition into the 19th century.
For aristocrats to succeed in private and public life during the Heian period, it was essential to be fluent in the composition and appreciation of waka, as well as having thorough knowledge of and ability in music, and calligraphy. Poetry was used in witty conversations, in notes of invitation, thanks or condolence, and for correspondence between friends and lovers. Some of the finest poetry of the Heian period came from the middle-class court society such as ladies in waiting
or middle-rank officials. Utaawase
poetry contests, in which poets composed poetry on a given theme to be judged by an individual, were held from 885 onwards, and became a regular activity for Heian courtiers from the 10th century onward. Contest judgments led to works about waka theory and critical studies. Poems from the contents were added to imperial anthologies. Critical theories, and the poems in the anthologies (particularly the Kokinshū), became the basis for judgments in the contests. Utaawase continued to be held through the late-11th century, as social rather than literary events. Held in opulence in a spirit of friendly rivalry, they included chanters, scribes, consultants, musicians, and an audience. During the Heian period, waka were often collected in large anthologies, such as the Man'yōshū or Kokinshū, or smaller private collections of the works of a single poet. Waka also featured highly in all kinds of literary prose works including monogatari
, diaries
and historical works. The Tale of Genji
alone contains 800 waka.
At the end of the Heian period, the aristocracy lost political and economical power to warrior clans, but retained the prestige as custodians of high culture and literature. Nostalgia for the Heian court past, considered then as classical Japanese past (as opposed to Chinese past), created a renaissance in the arts and led to a blossoming of waka in the early Kamakura period
. Poets of middle and lower rank, such as Fujiwara no Shunzei
, Saigyō Hōshi and Fujiwara no Teika
, analyzed earlier works, wrote critical commentaries, and added new aesthetic
values such as yūgen to waka poetry. Some of the best imperial anthologies and best poetic anthologies, such as Shunzei's Korai fūteishō, were created in the early Kamakura period. The audience was extended from the aristocracy to high ranking warriors and priests, who began to compose waka.
By the 14th century, linked verse or renga
superseded waka poetry in importance.
There are 29 National Treasures of 14 collections of waka
and two works on waka style, compiled from between the 8th and the mid-13th century with most from the Heian period. The two works of waka theory are Wakatai jisshu (945) and Korai fūteishō (1197). The collections include the two first imperial waka anthologies: Kokinshū (905, ten treasures) and Gosen Wakashū (951); seven private anthologies: Man'yōshū (after 759, three treasures), Shinsō Hishō (1008), Nyūdō Udaijin-shū (before 1065), Sanjūrokunin Kashū (ca. 1112), Ruijū Koshū (before 1120), Shūi Gusō (1216), Myōe Shōnin Kashū (1248); and five utaawase contents: including one imaginary content (Kasen utaawase), the Konoe edition of the Poetry Match in Ten Scrolls (three treasures), Ruijū utaawase, the Poetry competition in 29 rounds at Hirota Shrine
and the Record of Poetry Match in Fifteen Rounds. The designated manuscripts of these works found in this list date from the Heian and Kamakura periods.
was compiled by the privateAs opposed to a publicly recognized and certified priest ordained by the ritsuryō
state. priest Kyōkai around 822. It is the oldest collection of Japanese anecdotes or folk stories
(setsuwa
) which probably came out of an oral tradition. Combining Buddhism with local folk stories, this work demonstrates karmic
causality and functioned as a handbook for preaching. TwoThey are the so called Kōfuku-ji and Shinpuku-ji manuscripts covering the first volume and the second to third volume respectively. out of fourThe other two manuscripts are the Maeda (vol. 3) and Kōya (fragments of vols. 1 to 3) manuscripts. extant distinct but incomplete manuscripts have been designated as a National Treasures.
One of the earliest kana
materials and one of the oldest extant works of Japanese prose fiction is the Tosa Diary written by Ki no Tsurayuki
in 935. It is also the oldest Japanese travel diary
, giving an account of a return journey to Kyoto after a four year term as prefect of Tosa Province
. The diary consists of close to 60 poems,Poetry is used to express personal feelings. connected by prose sections that detail the circumstances and the inspiration for the composition of the poems. The work has been valued as a model for composition in the Japanese style. The original manuscript by Ki no Tsurayuki had been stored at Rengeō-in
palace library, and later was in the possession of Ashikaga Yoshimasa
, after which its trace is lost. All surviving manuscripts of the Tosa Diary are copies of this Rengeō-in manuscript. The oldest extant of these, by Fujiwara no Teika
, dates to 1235. One year later his son, Fujiwara no Tameie
, produced another copy based on the original. Both transcriptions are complete facsimile
s of the original, inclusive of the text, the layout, orthographical usages, and calligraphy.Tameie's transcription contains fewer mistakes than Teika's. They have been designated as National Treasures.
The 984 Sanbō Ekotoba ("The three jewels" or "Tale of the three brothers" or "Notes on the pictures of the three jewels"), was written by Minamoto no Tamenori in Chinese for the amusement of a young tonsured princess. It is a collection of Buddhist tales and a guide to important Buddhist ceremonies and figures in Japanese Buddhist history. The designated manuscript from 1273 is known as the Tōji KanchiinNamed after the Kanchiin subtemple of Tō-ji
. manuscript and is the second oldest of the Sanbō Ekotoba. It is virtually complete unlike the late Heian period (Tōdaiji-gire) which is a scattered assortment of fragments.
The cultural interaction between Japan and China is exemplified by the Wakan Rōeishū
, a collection of 234 Chinese poems, 353 poems written in Chinese by Japanese poets (kanshi
) and 216 waka
, all arranged by topic. Compiled in the early 11th century by Fujiwara no Kintō
, it was the first and most successful work of this genre. The English title, "Japanese-Chinese Recitation Collection" indicates that the poems in this collection were meant to be sung. The Wakan Rōeishū has been valued as a source for poetry recitation, waka composition and for its calligraphy, as it displayed kana and kanji. Three manuscripts of the Wakan Rōeishū written on decorated paper have been designated as National Treasures: the two scrolls at the Kyoto National Museum
contain a complete transcription of the work and are a rare and fully developed example of calligraphy on an ashide-eA decorative pictorialized style of calligraphy in which characters are disguised in the shape of reeds (ashi), streams, rocks, flowers, birds, etc. ground; the Konoe edition at Yōmei Bunko is a beautiful example of karakamiAn earth-colored based paper imported from China. with five-colored design (saisen); and the Ōtagire is written on dyed paper decorated with gold drawings.
The Konjaku Monogatarishū
from ca. 1120 is the most important setsuwa compilation. It is an anonymous collection of more than 1,000 anecdotes or tales. About two-thirds of the tales are Buddhist, telling about the spread of Buddhism from India via China to Japan. As such it is the first world history of Buddhism written in Japanese. This National Treasure is also known as the Suzuka Manuscript and consists of nine volumesOriginally the Konjaku Monogatarishū consisted of 31 volumes of which 28 volumes remain today. covering setsuwa from India (vols. 2 and 5), China (vols. 7, 9, 10) and Japan (vols. 12, 17, 27, 29). It is considered to be the oldest extant manuscript of the Konjaku Monogatarishū and has served as a source for various later manuscripts.
A commentary on the Genji Monogatari by Fujiwara no Teika
, known as Okuiri ("Inside Notes" or "Endnotes") has been designated as a National Treasure.
Written around 1233 it is the second oldest Genji commentary, supplementing the oldest commentary, the Genji Shaku from 1160.
} vol. 2, 3
| unknown
| Japan's oldest collection of Buddhist setsuwa
. Until its discovery in 1973 there was no complete text of the Nihon Ryōiki. A copy of the first volume housed at Kōfuku-ji
, Nara
is also a National Treasure.
|late Heian period
, 12th century
|
| , Kyoto
|
|-
| vol. 1
| unknown
| Japan's oldest collection of Buddhist setsuwa
. A copy of the second volume housed at , Kyoto
is also a National Treasure.
|Heian period
, 904
|
| Kōfuku-ji
, Nara
, Nara
|
|-
|
|transcription by Fujiwara no Tameie
| Faithful transcription of the 10th century original by Ki no Tsurayuki
|Kamakura period
, 1236
|
| , Minoh
, Osaka
|
|-
|
|transcription by Fujiwara no Teika
| Faithful transcription of the 10th century original by Ki no Tsurayuki
|Kamakura period
, 1235
|
| Maeda Ikutokukai
, Tokyo
|
|-
|
| unknown
| Illustrated interpretation of the three important concepts of Buddhism: Buddha
, Dharma
, Sangha
; copy of an original by (? – 1011)
|Kamakura period
, 1273
|
| Tokyo National Museum
, Tokyo
|
|-
|
|
| Combination of script and decorative motifs (ashide-e technique): reeds, water fowl, flying birds, rocks and wheels, in navy blue, greenish-blue, brownish-red and silver
|late Heian period
, 1160
|
| Kyoto National Museum
, Kyoto
|
|-
| , Konoe edition
|attributed to Fujiwara no Yukinari
| Written on paper imprinted with motifs of plants, tortoise shells and phoenix
in mica
|Heian period
, 11th century
|
| Yōmei Bunko, Kyoto
|
|-
| , fragments of second volume or
|attributed to Fujiwara no Yukinari
| Handed down in the Ōta clan
, daimyo
s of the Kakegawa Domain
|Heian period
, early 11th century
|
| Seikadō Bunko Art Museum
, Tokyo
|
|-
|
| unknown
| Collection of tales
|late Heian period
|
| Kyoto University
, Kyoto
|
|-
|
| Fujiwara no Teika
| Oldest extant commentary on The Tale of Genji
|Kamakura period
, c. 1233
|
| private, Kyoto
|
|}
, Kokki
, Kyūji
or Teiki
from the 7th century have been lost, while others such as the Sangyō Gisho
or the Taihō Code
are relatively short or only exist as fragments. JapaneseComposed in Japan on Japanese topics; most notably, the Japanese language
is not meant here. large-scale works are historical books (Kojiki
and Nihon Shoki
) or regional cultural and geographical records (fudoki
) compiled on imperial order in the early 8th century. They were written with the aim of legitimizing the new centralized state under imperial rule by linking the origin of emperors to the Age of the Gods. The oldest of these historical books is the Kojiki ("Record of ancient matters") dating from 712 and composed by Ō no Yasumaro
at the request of Empress Gemmei
. Written in ancient Japanese style using Chinese ideographs
, it presents the mythological origin of Japan
and historical events up to the year 628. Shortly after the completion of the Kojiki, the Nihon Shoki (or Nihongi) appeared in 720, probably originating to an order by Emperor Tenmu in 681. It is a much more detailed version of the Kojiki, dating events and providing alternative versions of myths; it covers the time up to 697. Compared to the Kojiki, it follows the model of Chinese dynastic histories
more closely in style and language, using orthodox classical Chinese. Both of these works provide the historical and spiritual basis for shinto
.
In 713, Empress Gemmei
ordered provincial governors to compile official reports on the history, geography and local folk customs. These provincial gazetteer
s are known as fudoki (lit. "Records of wind and earth") and provide valuable information about economic and ethnographic data, local culture and tales. Of more than 60 provincial records compiled in the early 8th century only five survived: one, the Izumo
Fudoki (733), in complete form and four, Bungo
(730s), Harima
(circa 715), Hitachi
(714–718) and Hizen
(730s) as fragments. The Nihon Shoki is the first official history of Japan and the first of a set of six national histories (Rikkokushi
) compiled over a 200 year period on Chinese models. Based on these six histories, Sugawara no Michizane
arranged historical events chronologically and thematically in the Ruijū Kokushi
which was completed in 892.
With the cessation of official missions to China and a general trend of turning away from Chinese-derived institutions and behavioral patterns in the latter part of the 9th century, the compilation of such national histories patterned on formal Chinese dynastic histories was abandoned. With the development of kana
script, new styles of uniquely Japanese literature such as the monogatari
appeared around that time. The newer style of historic writing that emerged during the Fujiwara regency, at the turning point of ancient imperial rule and the classical era, was called historic tale (rekishi monogatari) and became influenced by the fictional tale, especially by the Tale of Genji, with which it shared the scene-by-scene construction as fundamental difference to earlier historic writings.Other differences are: a realistic dialogue, the presentation of more than one viewpoint and the embellishment with a wealth of realistic detail. The oldest historical tale is the Eiga Monogatari
("A Tale of Flowering Fortunes"), giving a eulogistic chronological account of the Fujiwara from 946 to 1027, focusing particularly on Fujiwara Michinaga. It was largely30 out of 40 volumes. written by Akazome Emon
, probably shortly after the death of Michinaga in 1027.
There are eleven National Treasures in the category of historical books including one manuscript of the Kojiki, five manuscripts of the Nihon Shoki, the Harima and Hizen Fudoki, two manuscripts of the Ruijū Kokushi and one of the Eiga Monogatari.
All of these treasures are later copies and with the exception of the Eiga Monogatari, the complete content of the works has to be assembled from several of these (and other) fragmentary manuscripts or be inferred from other sources. The Kojiki, long neglected by scholars until the 18th century, was not preserved as well as the Nihon Shoki which has been studied from soon after its compilation. While being the oldest text in this list, the extant manuscript dating to the 14th century is in fact the youngest entry.
}
| unknown
| Collected by Maeda Tsunanori
; one of the oldest extant manuscript of the Ruijū Kokushi
|Heian period
, 12th century
|
| Maeda Ikutokukai
, Tokyo
|
|-
|
| unknown
| Formerly in the possession of , a doctor of literature at the Kyoto Imperial University; one of the oldest extant manuscript of the Ruijū Kokushi
|late Heian period
|
| Tohoku University
, Sendai
, Miyagi
|
|-
|
| unknown
| Epic about the life of the courtier
Fujiwara no Michinaga
; oldest extant manuscript; handed down in the Sanjōnishi family
|Kamakura period
(Ōgata: mid-Kamakura, Masugata: early Kamakura)
|
| Kyushu National Museum
, Dazaifu
, Fukuoka
|
|}
, a medical book and dictionaries. Two of the oldest works designated are biographies of the Asuka period
regent Shōtoku Taishi
. The Shitennō-ji Engi, alleged to have been an autobiography by Prince Shōtoku, described Shitennō-ji
, and may have been created to promote the temple. The Shitennō-ji Engi National Treasure consists of two manuscripts: the alleged original discovered in 1007 at Shitennō-ji and a later transcription by Emperor Go-Daigo
. Written by imperial order in the early 8th century, the Jōgū Shōtoku Hōō Teisetsu
is the oldest extant biography of Shōtoku. It consists of a collection of anecdotes, legendary and miraculous in nature, which emphasize Shōtoku's Buddhist activities for the sake of imperial legitimacy, and stands at the beginning of Buddhist setsuwa literature. The oldest extant manuscript of the 803 Enryaku Kōtaishiki, a compendium of rules concerned with the change of provincial governors from 782 to 803, has been designated as a National Treasure.
The oldest extant Japanese lexica date to the early Heian period. Based on the Chinese Yupian
, the Tenrei Banshō Meigi
was compiled around 830 by Kūkai
and is the oldest extant character
dictionary made in Japan. The Hifuryaku is a massive Chinese dictionary in 1000 fascicles listing the usage of words and characters in more than 1500 texts of diverse genres. Compiled in 831 by Shigeno Sadanushi and others, it is the oldest extant Japanese proto-encyclopedia
. There are two National Treasures of the Ishinpō
, the oldest extant medical treatise of Japanese authorship compiled in 984 by Tanba Yasuyori. It is based on a large number of Chinese medical and pharmaceutical texts and contains knowledge about drug prescription, herbal lore, hygiene, acupuncture, moxibustion
, alchemy and magic. The two associated treasures consist of the oldest extant (partial) and the oldest extant complete manuscript respectively.
Compiled between 905 and 927 by Tadahira, the Engishiki
is the most respected legal compendium of the ritsuryō
age and an important resource for the study of the Heian period court system. Emperor Daigo
commanded its compilation; the Engishiki is according to David Lu an "invaluable" resource and "one of the greatest compilations of laws and precedents". The three designated National Treasures of the Engishiki represent the oldest extant manuscript (Kujō edition) and the oldest extant edition of certain date (Kongōji edition). Two National Treasure manuscripts are related to music: the oldest extant kagura
song book (Kagura wagon hifu) from around the 10th century and the oldest extant Saibara
score (Saibara fu) which is traditionally attributed to Prince Munetaka
but based on the calligraphy it appears to date to the mid-11th century. The Hokuzanshō consists of writings by Fujiwara no Kintō
on court customs and the function of the Daijō-kan. The designated Kyoto National Museum manuscript of the Hokuzanshō from about 1000 is noted for one of the few early extant examples of hiragana
use and for the oldest extant letters in kana
written on the reverse side of the scroll. Around the early 12th century a Shingon Buddhist priest compiled a dictionary with a large number of variant form characters
known as Ruiju Myōgishō
. The designated Kanchiin edition is the oldest extant complete manuscript of this work. Among the youngest items in this list are two temple records: the Omuro Sōjōki giving an account of priests of imperial lineage at Ninna-ji
starting from the Kanpyō era, while the 1352 Tōhōki records treasures held at Tō-ji
. Kōbō Daishi's biography in an original manuscript penned by Emperor Go-Uda
in 1315 has been designated as a National Treasure.
}, Nakarai edition
| unknown
| Handed down in the Nakarai family; oldest extant transcription of this work
|Heian period
, 12th century27 scrolls from Heian period
, one scroll from Kamakura period
, two scrolls and one bound manuscript added in Edo period
.
|
| Tokyo National Museum
, Tokyo
|
|-
|
| unknown
| Thought to be closer to the original as it contains fewer annotations than the Nakarai edition of the Ishinpō
|Heian period
|
| Ninna-ji
, Kyoto
|
|-
| , Kujō edition
| unknown (more than one person)
| Handed down in the Kujō family
; the reverse side of 23 of these scrolls contain about 190 letters; oldest extant and most complete copy of Engishiki
|Heian period
, 11th century
|
| Tokyo National Museum
, Tokyo
|
|-
| Kongōji edition
| unknown
| Oldest extant Engishiki manuscript of certain date
|Heian period
, 1127
|
|, Kawachinagano
, Osaka
|
|-
|
| unknown
| Volumes 9 and 10 of the Engishiki
contain a register of Shinto shrines
|Heian period
, 1127
|
|, Kawachinagano
, Osaka
|
|-
|
|
| Oldest extant kagura song book
|Heian period
, 10th–11th century
|
| Yōmei Bunko, Kyoto
|
|-
|
| unknown
| Transcription of the early 11th century original by Fujiwara no Kintō
|Heian period
|
| Maeda Ikutokukai
, Tokyo
|
|-
|
| Fujiwara no Kintō
| Draft to the Manual on Courtly Etiquette. Only extant volume of the original work in the author's own handwriting and oldest extant letters (on reverse side) in kana
. Volume title: Guidance on Court Service. The paper used was taken from old letters and official documents.
|Heian period
, early 11th century, before 1012
|
| Kyoto National Museum
, Kyoto
|
|-
|
|
| Oldest extant Saibara score
|Heian period
, mid 11th century
|
| , Saga
, Saga
|
|-
| , Kanchi-in edition
| unknown
| Oldest extant complete edition; expanded and revised edition of the 11th century original
|mid-Kamakura period
|
| , Tenri
, Nara
|
|-
|
| unknown
|
|early Kamakura period
|
| Ninna-ji
, Kyoto
|
|-
|
| Emperor Go-Uda
| Biography of Kōbō-Daishi (Kūkai
), original manuscript
|Kamakura period
, March 21, 1315
|
| Daikaku-ji
, Kyoto
|
|-
|
|edited by and
| Record of treasures at Tō-ji
|Nanboku-chō period to Muromachi period
|
| Tō-ji
, Kyoto
|
|}
National treasures of Japan
National Treasures are the most precious of Japan's Tangible Cultural Properties, as determined and designated by the Agency for Cultural Affairs...
" has been used in Japan to denote cultural properties
Cultural Properties of Japan
As defined by the Japanese government's Agency for Cultural Affairs, the are tangible properties and intangible properties created or developed in JapanDespite the official definition, some Cultural Properties of Japan were created in China, Korea or other...
since 1897,
although the definition and the criteria have changed since the introduction of the term. The written materials in the list adhere to the current definition, and have been designated National Treasures according to the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties that came into effect on June 9, 1951. The items are selected by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology
Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (Japan)
The , also known as MEXT or Monkashō, is one of the ministries of the Japanese government.The Meiji government created the first Ministry of Education in 1871....
based on their "especially high historical or artistic value".
Writing was introduced from Korea to Japan around 400 AD (in the form of Chinese books), with work done in Chinese by immigrant scribes from the mainland.Korea and China. Literacy remained at an extremely marginal level in the 5th and 6th centuries, but during the 7th century a small number of Japanese scholar-aristocrats such as Prince Shōtoku
Prince Shotoku
, also known as or , was a semi-legendary regent and a politician of the Asuka period in Japan who served under Empress Suiko. He was a son of Emperor Yōmei and his younger half-sister Princess Anahobe no Hashihito. His parents were relatives of the ruling Soga clan, and was involved in the defeat...
began to write in Chinese for official purposes and in order to promote Buddhism. By the late 7th century, reading and writing had become an integral part of life of some sections of the ruling and intellectual classes, particularly in government and religion. The earliest extant large-scale works compiled in Japan are the historical chronicles Kojiki
Kojiki
is the oldest extant chronicle in Japan, dating from the early 8th century and composed by Ō no Yasumaro at the request of Empress Gemmei. The Kojiki is a collection of myths concerning the origin of the four home islands of Japan, and the Kami...
(712) and Nihon Shoki
Nihon Shoki
The , sometimes translated as The Chronicles of Japan, is the second oldest book of classical Japanese history. It is more elaborate and detailed than the Kojiki, the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeologists as it includes the most complete extant historical...
(720). Other early Japanese works from the Nara period
Nara period
The of the history of Japan covers the years from AD 710 to 794. Empress Gemmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō . Except for 5 years , when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capital of Japanese civilization until Emperor Kammu established a new capital, Nagaoka-kyō, in 784...
include biographies of Prince Shōtoku, cultural and geographical records (fudoki
Fudoki
are ancient records of the culture and geography of provinces of Japan. They contain agricultural, geographical, historical and mythological records, as well as folklore.Compilation of Fudoki began in 713 and was completed over a 20-year period....
) and the Man'yōshū, the first anthology of Japanese poetry
Japanese poetry
Japanese poets first encountered Chinese poetry during the Tang Dynasty. It took them several hundred years to digest the foreign impact, make it a part of their culture and merge it with their literary tradition in their mother tongue, and begin to develop the diversity of their native poetry. For...
. Necessarily all of these works were either written in Chinese or in a hybrid Japanese-Chinese style and were modeled on Chinese prototypes. The development of a distinct Japanese script (kana
Kana
Kana are the syllabic Japanese scripts, as opposed to the logographic Chinese characters known in Japan as kanji and the Roman alphabet known as rōmaji...
) in the 9th century was the starting point of the classical age of Japanese literature
Japanese literature
Early works of Japanese literature were heavily influenced by cultural contact with China and Chinese literature, often written in Classical Chinese. Indian literature also had an influence through the diffusion of Buddhism in Japan...
and led to a number of new, uniquely Japanese genres of literature, such as tales (monogatari
Monogatari
is a literary form in traditional Japanese literature, an extended prose narrative tale comparable to the epic. Monogatari is closely tied to aspects of the oral tradition, and almost always relates a fictional or fictionalized story, even when retelling a historical event...
) or diaries (nikki
Nikki Bungaku
is a genre of Japanese diary literature including prominent works such as the Tosa Nikki, Kagerō Nikki, and Murasaki Shikibu Nikki. While diaries began as records imitating daily logs kept by Chinese government officials, private and literary diaries emerged and flourished during the Heian period...
). Because of the strong interest and support in literature of the Heian
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
court, writing activities florished particularly in the 10th and 11th centuries.
This list contains books of various type that have been compiled in Classical and early Feudal Japan. More than half of the 68 designated treasures are works of poetry and prose. Another large segment consists of historical works such as manuscripts of Kojiki and Nihon Shoki; the rest are books of various type such as dictionaries, law books, biographies or music scores. The designated manuscripts date from 9th century Heian period to the Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
with most dating to the Heian period. They are housed in temples, museums, libraries or archives, universities and in private collections.
The objects in this list represent about one third of the 223 National Treasures in the category "writings". They are complemented by 56 Chinese book National Treasures and 99 other written National Treasures.
Statistics
| Prefecture | City | National Treasures |
|---|---|---|
| Aichi Aichi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region. The region of Aichi is also known as the Tōkai region. The capital is Nagoya. It is the focus of the Chūkyō Metropolitan Area.- History :... |
Nagoya Nagoya, Aichi is the third-largest incorporated city and the fourth most populous urban area in Japan.Located on the Pacific coast in the Chūbu region on central Honshu, it is the capital of Aichi Prefecture and is one of Japan's major ports along with those of Tokyo, Osaka, Kobe, Yokohama, Chiba, and Moji... |
1 |
| Fukuoka Fukuoka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on Kyūshū Island. The capital is the city of Fukuoka.- History :Fukuoka Prefecture includes the former provinces of Chikugo, Chikuzen, and Buzen.... |
Dazaifu Dazaifu, Fukuoka is a city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. Nearby cities include Ōnojō and Chikushino. Although mostly urban, it does have arable land used for paddy fields and market gardening.... |
1 |
| Kagawa Kagawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on Shikoku island. The capital is Takamatsu.- History :Kagawa was formerly known as Sanuki Province.For a brief period between August 1876 and December 1888, Kagawa was made a part of Ehime Prefecture.-Battle of Yashima:... |
Takamatsu Takamatsu, Kagawa is a city located in central Kagawa Prefecture on the island of Shikoku in Japan, and is the seat of the prefectural government. It is designated a core city by the Japanese Government. It is a port city located on the Seto Inland Sea, and is the closest port to Honshu from Shikoku island... |
1 |
| Kōchi Kochi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the south coast of Shikoku. The capital is the city of Kōchi.- History :Prior to the Meiji Restoration, Kōchi was known as Tosa Province and was controlled by the Chosokabe clan in the Sengoku period and the Yamauchi family during the Edo period.- Geography... |
Kōchi Kochi, Kochi is the capital city of Kōchi Prefecture on Shikoku island of Japan.Kōchi is the main city of the prefecture with over 40% of its population. As of May 31, 2008, the city had an estimated population of 340,515 and a density of... |
1 |
| Kyoto Kyoto Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of the island of Honshu. The capital is the city of Kyoto.- History :Until the Meiji Restoration, the area of Kyoto prefecture was known as Yamashiro.... |
Kyoto | 27 |
| Miyagi Miyagi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku Region on Honshu island. The capital is Sendai.- History :Miyagi Prefecture was formerly part of the province of Mutsu. Mutsu Province, on northern Honshu, was one of the last provinces to be formed as land was taken from the indigenous Emishi, and became the... |
Sendai Sendai, Miyagi is the capital city of Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, and the largest city in the Tōhoku Region. In 2005, the city had a population of one million, and was one of Japan's 19 designated cities... |
1 |
| Nara Nara Prefecture is a prefecture in the Kansai region on Honshū Island, Japan. The capital is the city of Nara.-History:The present-day Nara Prefecture was created in 1887, making it independent of Osaka Prefecture.... |
Nara Nara, Nara is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture... |
2 |
| Tenri Tenri, Nara is a city located in Nara, Japan. Tenri is the only city in Japan to be named after a religious group, the new religious movement Tenrikyo which has its headquarters in the city and believes it to be one among other energy centers of the world. Tenrikyo had recommended the name Yamabe, which is the... |
3 | |
| Osaka Osaka Prefecture is a prefecture located in the Kansai region on Honshū, the main island of Japan. The capital is the city of Osaka. It is the center of Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto area.- History :... |
Izumi Izumi, Osaka is a city located in Osaka, Japan.The city was founded on September 1, 1956.As of 2010, the city has an estimated population of 181,935 and the density of 2,140 persons per km². The total area is 84.98 km². It is the last station on the Semboku Kousoku monorail line （泉北高速鉄道） at Izumi Chuo... |
1 |
| Kawachinagano Kawachinagano, Osaka is a city located in Osaka, Japan.As of 2010, the city has an estimated population of 112,696 and the density of 1,030 persons per km². The total area is 109.61 km².The city was founded on April 1, 1954.-Claims to fame:... |
2 | |
| Minoh Minoh, Osaka , formerly Minoo, is a city in Osaka Prefecture, Japan, about 15 km north of the centre of the city of Osaka. It is accessed by the Hankyu Railway about 30 minutes from Umeda Station... |
1 | |
| Osaka | 2 | |
| Saga Saga Prefecture is located in the northwest part of the island of Kyūshū, Japan. It touches both the Sea of Japan and the Ariake Sea. The western part of the prefecture is a region famous for producing ceramics and porcelain, particularly the towns of Karatsu, Imari, and Arita... |
Saga Saga, Saga is the capital of Saga Prefecture, located on the island of Kyūshū, Japan.Saga was the capital of Saga Domain in the Edo period, and largest city of former Hizen Province.... |
1 |
| Shiga Shiga Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan, which forms part of the Kansai region on Honshu Island. The capital is the city of Ōtsu.- History :Shiga was known as Ōmi Province or Gōshū before the prefectural system was established... |
Ōtsu Otsu, Shiga is the capital city of Shiga, Japan. The city was founded on October 1, 1898. As of October 1, 2010, the city has an estimated population of 338,629 with an average age of 40.7 years and a population density of 905.28 persons per km²... |
1 |
| Tokyo | Tokyo | 22 |
| Yamaguchi Yamaguchi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan in the Chūgoku region on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Yamaguchi, in the center of the prefecture. The largest city, however, is Shimonoseki.- History :... |
Hōfu Hofu, Yamaguchi is a city located in Yamaguchi, Japan.-History:Hōfu means "the capital of Suō Province".The eastern part of Yamaguchi prefecture was formerly called Suō Province.The city was founded on August 25, 1936... |
1 |
| PeriodOnly the oldest period is counted, if a National Treasure consists of items from more than one period. | National Treasures |
|---|---|
| Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... |
50 |
| Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... |
16 |
| Nanboku-chō period | 2 |
Usage
The table's columns (except for Remarks and Image) are sortable by pressing the arrows symbols. The following gives an overview of what is included in the table and how the sorting works.- Name: the name as registered in the Database of National Cultural Properties
- Authors: name of the author(s)
- Remarks: information about the type of document and its content
- Date: period and year; the column entries sort by year. If only a period is known, they sort by the start year of that period.
- Format: principal type, technique and dimensions; the column entries sort by the main type: scroll (includes handscrolls and letters), books (includes albums, ordinary bound books and books bound by fukuro-toji) and other (includes hanging scrolls)
- Present location: "temple/museum/shrine-name town-name prefecture-name"; the column entries sort as "prefecture-name town-name".
- Image: picture of the manuscript or of a characteristic document in a group of manuscripts
Japanese literature
The adaption of the Chinese script, introduced in Japan in the 5th or 6th century, followed by the 9th century development of a script more suitable to write in the Japanese languageJapanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
, is reflected in ancient and classical Japanese literature
Japanese literature
Early works of Japanese literature were heavily influenced by cultural contact with China and Chinese literature, often written in Classical Chinese. Indian literature also had an influence through the diffusion of Buddhism in Japan...
from the 7th to 13th century. This process also caused unique genres of Japanese literature to evolve from earlier works modelled on Chinese prototypes. The earliest traces of Japanese literature date to the 7th century and consist of Japanese verse (waka
Waka (poetry)
Waka or Yamato uta is a genre of classical Japanese verse and one of the major genres of Japanese literature...
) and poetry written in Chinese by Japanese poets (kanshi
Kanshi (poetry)
is a Japanese term for Chinese poetry in general as well as the poetry written in Chinese by Japanese poets. It literally means "Han poetry". Kanshi was the most popular form of poetry during the early Heian period in Japan among Japanese aristocrats and proliferated until the modern period.The...
). While the latter showed little literary merit compared to the large volume of poems composed in China, waka poetry made great progress in the Nara period
Nara period
The of the history of Japan covers the years from AD 710 to 794. Empress Gemmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō . Except for 5 years , when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capital of Japanese civilization until Emperor Kammu established a new capital, Nagaoka-kyō, in 784...
culminating in the Man'yōshū, an anthology of more than 4,000 pieces of mainly tanka ("short poem") from the mid-7th to mid-8th centuries. Until the 9th century, Japanese language texts were written in Chinese character
Chinese character
Chinese characters are logograms used in the writing of Chinese and Japanese , less frequently Korean , formerly Vietnamese , or other languages...
s via the man'yōgana writing system, generally using the phonetic value
Phonogram (linguistics)
A phonogram is a grapheme which represents a phoneme or combination of phonemes, such as the letters of the Latin alphabet or the Japanese kana...
of the characters. Since longer passages written in this system became unmanageably long, man'yōgana was used mainly for poetry while classical Chinese was reserved for prose. Consequently the prose passages in the Man'yōshū are in Chinese and the Kojiki
Kojiki
is the oldest extant chronicle in Japan, dating from the early 8th century and composed by Ō no Yasumaro at the request of Empress Gemmei. The Kojiki is a collection of myths concerning the origin of the four home islands of Japan, and the Kami...
(712), the oldest extant chronicle, uses man'yōgana only for the songs and poems.
A revolutionary achievement was the development of kana
Kana
Kana are the syllabic Japanese scripts, as opposed to the logographic Chinese characters known in Japan as kanji and the Roman alphabet known as rōmaji...
, a true Japanese script, in the mid to late 9th century. This new script enabled Japanese authors to write more easily in their own language and led to a variety of vernacular prose literature in the 10th century such as tales (monogatari
Monogatari
is a literary form in traditional Japanese literature, an extended prose narrative tale comparable to the epic. Monogatari is closely tied to aspects of the oral tradition, and almost always relates a fictional or fictionalized story, even when retelling a historical event...
) and poetic journals (nikki
Nikki Bungaku
is a genre of Japanese diary literature including prominent works such as the Tosa Nikki, Kagerō Nikki, and Murasaki Shikibu Nikki. While diaries began as records imitating daily logs kept by Chinese government officials, private and literary diaries emerged and flourished during the Heian period...
). Japanese waka poetry and Japanese prose reached their highest developments around the 10th century, supported by the general revival of traditional values and the high status ascribed to literature by the Heian
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
court. The Heian period (794 to 1185) is therefore generally referred to as the classical age of Japanese literature. Being the language of scholarship, government and religion, Chinese was still practiced by the male nobility of the 10th century while for the most part aristocratic women wrote diaries, memoirs, poetry and fiction in the new script. The Tale of Genji
The Tale of Genji
is a classic work of Japanese literature attributed to the Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu in the early 11th century, around the peak of the Heian period. It is sometimes called the world's first novel, the first modern novel, the first psychological novel or the first novel still to be...
written in the early 11th century by a noblewoman (Murasaki Shikibu
Murasaki Shikibu
Murasaki Shikibu was a Japanese novelist, poet and lady-in-waiting at the Imperial court during the Heian period. She is best known as the author of The Tale of Genji, written in Japanese between about 1000 and 1012...
) is according to Helen Craig McCullough
Helen Craig McCullough
Helen Craig McCullough was an eminent scholar of classical Japanese poetry and prose. Born in California, she graduated from Berkeley in 1939 with a degree in political science. After the outbreak of World War II, she entered the U.S. Navy’s Japanese Language School in Boulder, Colorado...
the "single most impressive accomplishment of Heian civilization".
Another literary genre called setsuwa
Setsuwa
is a Japanese literary genre. It consists of myths, legends, folktales, and anecdotes.Setsuwa are based foremost on oral tradition. The stories are told to each other and later committed to text...
("informative narration") goes back to orally transmitted myths, legend
Legend
A legend is a narrative of human actions that are perceived both by teller and listeners to take place within human history and to possess certain qualities that give the tale verisimilitude...
s, folktales, and anecdote
Anecdote
An anecdote is a short and amusing or interesting story about a real incident or person. It may be as brief as the setting and provocation of a bon mot. An anecdote is always presented as based on a real incident involving actual persons, whether famous or not, usually in an identifiable place...
s. Setsuwa comprise the oldest Japanese tales, were originally Buddhist influenced, and were meant to be educational. The oldest setsuwa collection is the Nihon Ryōiki
Nihon Ryoiki
is an early Heian period setsuwa collection. Written by Kyōkai between 787 and 824, it is Japan's oldest collection of Buddhist setsuwa. It is three volumes in length.-Title:...
(early 9th century). With a widening religious and social interest of the aristocracy, setsuwa collections were compiled again in the late 11th century starting with the Konjaku Monogatarishū
Konjaku Monogatarishu
is a Japanese collection of over one thousand tales written during the late Heian period . The entire collection was originally contained in 31 volumes, of which only 28 remain today...
The high quality of the Tale of Genji influenced the literature into the 11th and 12th centuries. A large number of monogatari and some of the best poetic treatises were written in the early Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
(around 1200).
Waka
WakaWaka (poetry)
Waka or Yamato uta is a genre of classical Japanese verse and one of the major genres of Japanese literature...
(lit. "Japanese poem") or uta (song) is an important genre of Japanese literature. The term originated in the Heian period to distinguish Japanese-language poetry from kanshi
Kanshi (poetry)
is a Japanese term for Chinese poetry in general as well as the poetry written in Chinese by Japanese poets. It literally means "Han poetry". Kanshi was the most popular form of poetry during the early Heian period in Japan among Japanese aristocrats and proliferated until the modern period.The...
, poetry written in Chinese by Japanese authors. Waka began as an oral tradition
Oral tradition
Oral tradition and oral lore is cultural material and traditions transmitted orally from one generation to another. The messages or testimony are verbally transmitted in speech or song and may take the form, for example, of folktales, sayings, ballads, songs, or chants...
, in tales, festivals and rituals,Traces of ancient poems of courtship and praise for the ruler survive in the Kojiki
Kojiki
is the oldest extant chronicle in Japan, dating from the early 8th century and composed by Ō no Yasumaro at the request of Empress Gemmei. The Kojiki is a collection of myths concerning the origin of the four home islands of Japan, and the Kami...
, Nihon Shoki
Nihon Shoki
The , sometimes translated as The Chronicles of Japan, is the second oldest book of classical Japanese history. It is more elaborate and detailed than the Kojiki, the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeologists as it includes the most complete extant historical...
and Man'yōshū. and began to be written in the 7th century. In the Asuka
Asuka period
The , was a period in the history of Japan lasting from 538 to 710 , although its beginning could be said to overlap with the preceding Kofun period...
and Nara periods, "waka" included a number of poetic forms such as tanka, chōka ("long poem"), bussokusekika
Bussokusekika
, also known as Bussokuseki no Uta, are poems inscribed beside the stone Buddha Foot monument at Yakushi Temple in Nara.Numbering twenty one poems in total, they are divided into two sections:*Seventeen poems praising the virtue of Buddha....
, sedōka ("memorized poem") and katauta ("poem fragment"), but by the 10th century only the 31-syllable tanka survived. The Man'yōshū, of the mid-8th century, is the primary record of early Japanese poetry and the first waka anthology. It contains the three main forms of poetry at time of compilation: 4,200 tanka, 260 chōka and 60 sedōka; dating from 759 backwards more than one century.The Man'yōshū also consists of a small amount of Chinese poetry (kanshi
Kanshi (poetry)
is a Japanese term for Chinese poetry in general as well as the poetry written in Chinese by Japanese poets. It literally means "Han poetry". Kanshi was the most popular form of poetry during the early Heian period in Japan among Japanese aristocrats and proliferated until the modern period.The...
) and prose (kanbun
Kanbun
The Japanese word originally meant "Classical Chinese writings, Chinese classic texts, Classical Chinese literature". This evolved into a Japanese method of reading annotated Classical Chinese in translation . Much Japanese literature was written in literary Chinese using this annotated style...
).
The early 9th century, however, was a period of direct imitation of Chinese models making kanshi the major form of poetry at the time. In the late 9th century, waka and the development of kana
Kana
Kana are the syllabic Japanese scripts, as opposed to the logographic Chinese characters known in Japan as kanji and the Roman alphabet known as rōmaji...
script rose simultaneously with the general revival of traditional values, culminating in the compilation of the first imperial waka anthology, the Kokinshū, in 905. It was followed in 951 by the Gosen Wakashū; in all seven imperial anthologies were compiled in the Heian period. The main poetic subjects were love and the four seasons; the standards of vocabulary, grammar and style, established in the Kokinshū, dominated waka composition into the 19th century.
For aristocrats to succeed in private and public life during the Heian period, it was essential to be fluent in the composition and appreciation of waka, as well as having thorough knowledge of and ability in music, and calligraphy. Poetry was used in witty conversations, in notes of invitation, thanks or condolence, and for correspondence between friends and lovers. Some of the finest poetry of the Heian period came from the middle-class court society such as ladies in waiting
Lady-in-waiting
A lady-in-waiting is a female personal assistant at a royal court, attending on a queen, a princess, or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman from a family highly thought of in good society, but was of lower rank than the woman on whom she...
or middle-rank officials. Utaawase
Utaawase
, poetry contests or waka matches, are a distinctive feature of the Japanese literary landscape from the Heian period. Significant to the development of Japanese poetics, the origin of group composition such as renga, and a stimulus to approaching waka as a unified sequence and not only as...
poetry contests, in which poets composed poetry on a given theme to be judged by an individual, were held from 885 onwards, and became a regular activity for Heian courtiers from the 10th century onward. Contest judgments led to works about waka theory and critical studies. Poems from the contents were added to imperial anthologies. Critical theories, and the poems in the anthologies (particularly the Kokinshū), became the basis for judgments in the contests. Utaawase continued to be held through the late-11th century, as social rather than literary events. Held in opulence in a spirit of friendly rivalry, they included chanters, scribes, consultants, musicians, and an audience. During the Heian period, waka were often collected in large anthologies, such as the Man'yōshū or Kokinshū, or smaller private collections of the works of a single poet. Waka also featured highly in all kinds of literary prose works including monogatari
Monogatari
is a literary form in traditional Japanese literature, an extended prose narrative tale comparable to the epic. Monogatari is closely tied to aspects of the oral tradition, and almost always relates a fictional or fictionalized story, even when retelling a historical event...
, diaries
Nikki Bungaku
is a genre of Japanese diary literature including prominent works such as the Tosa Nikki, Kagerō Nikki, and Murasaki Shikibu Nikki. While diaries began as records imitating daily logs kept by Chinese government officials, private and literary diaries emerged and flourished during the Heian period...
and historical works. The Tale of Genji
The Tale of Genji
is a classic work of Japanese literature attributed to the Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu in the early 11th century, around the peak of the Heian period. It is sometimes called the world's first novel, the first modern novel, the first psychological novel or the first novel still to be...
alone contains 800 waka.
At the end of the Heian period, the aristocracy lost political and economical power to warrior clans, but retained the prestige as custodians of high culture and literature. Nostalgia for the Heian court past, considered then as classical Japanese past (as opposed to Chinese past), created a renaissance in the arts and led to a blossoming of waka in the early Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
. Poets of middle and lower rank, such as Fujiwara no Shunzei
Fujiwara no Shunzei
was a noted Japanese poet and nobleman, son of Fujiwara no Toshitada. He was also known as Fujiwara no Toshinari or Shakua ; in his younger days , he gave his name as Akihiro , but in 1167, changed to Shunzei...
, Saigyō Hōshi and Fujiwara no Teika
Fujiwara no Teika
Fujiwara no Teika , also known as Fujiwara no Sadaie or Sada-ie, was a Japanese poet, critic, calligrapher, novelist, anthologist, scribe, and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods...
, analyzed earlier works, wrote critical commentaries, and added new aesthetic
Japanese aesthetics
The modern study of a Japanese aesthetics in the Western sense only started a little over two hundred years ago. But, by the term Japanese aesthetic, we tend to mean not this modern study, but a set of ancient ideals that include wabi , sabi , and yûgen...
values such as yūgen to waka poetry. Some of the best imperial anthologies and best poetic anthologies, such as Shunzei's Korai fūteishō, were created in the early Kamakura period. The audience was extended from the aristocracy to high ranking warriors and priests, who began to compose waka.
By the 14th century, linked verse or renga
Renga
' is a genre of Japanese collaborative poetry. A renga consists of at least two or stanzas, usually many more. The opening stanza of the renga, called the , became the basis for the modern haiku form of poetry....
superseded waka poetry in importance.
There are 29 National Treasures of 14 collections of waka
Waka (poetry)
Waka or Yamato uta is a genre of classical Japanese verse and one of the major genres of Japanese literature...
and two works on waka style, compiled from between the 8th and the mid-13th century with most from the Heian period. The two works of waka theory are Wakatai jisshu (945) and Korai fūteishō (1197). The collections include the two first imperial waka anthologies: Kokinshū (905, ten treasures) and Gosen Wakashū (951); seven private anthologies: Man'yōshū (after 759, three treasures), Shinsō Hishō (1008), Nyūdō Udaijin-shū (before 1065), Sanjūrokunin Kashū (ca. 1112), Ruijū Koshū (before 1120), Shūi Gusō (1216), Myōe Shōnin Kashū (1248); and five utaawase contents: including one imaginary content (Kasen utaawase), the Konoe edition of the Poetry Match in Ten Scrolls (three treasures), Ruijū utaawase, the Poetry competition in 29 rounds at Hirota Shrine
Hirota Shrine
' is a Shinto shrine in Nishinomiya City, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. Nishinomiya literally means "shrine of the west," and the town is in fact named after Hirota Shrine.-Location:...
and the Record of Poetry Match in Fifteen Rounds. The designated manuscripts of these works found in this list date from the Heian and Kamakura periods.
| Name | Authors | Remarks | Date | Format | Present location | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Also called Aigami Edition (or Ranshi Edition) after the blue dyed paper; transcription is said to have been completed within 4 days only (according to postcript in first volume); written in a masculine style atypical for the period | late Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... |
Kyoto National Museum Kyoto National Museum The is one of the three formerly imperially-mandated art museums in Japan. The museum is located in Higashiyama Ward in Kyoto. The collections of the Kyoto National Museum focus on pre-modern Japanese and Asian art.... , Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| or | unknown | Handed down in the Maeda clan Maeda clan The was a branch of the Sugawara clan who descended from Sugawara no Kiyotomo and Sugawara no Michizane in the eighth and ninth centuries. It was one of the most powerful samurai families in Japan and they were second only to the Tokugawa clan in rice production and fief size... which had its headquarters in Kanazawa Kanazawa, Ishikawa is the capital city of Ishikawa Prefecture, Japan.-Geography, climate, and population:Kanazawa sits on the Sea of Japan, bordered by the Japan Alps, Hakusan National Park and Noto Peninsula National Park. The city sits between the Sai and Asano rivers. Its total area is 467.77 km².Kanazawa's... |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
Maeda Ikutokukai Maeda Ikutokukai The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| various | Man'yōshū edition with the largest number of poems | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century; vol. 6: Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... , 12th century; postscript on vol. 20 from June 9, 1184 |
Tokyo National Museum Tokyo National Museum Established 1872, the , or TNM, is the oldest and largest museum in Japan. The museum collects, houses, and preserves a comprehensive collection of art works and archaeological objects of Asia, focusing on Japan. The museum holds over 110,000 objects, which includes 87 Japanese National Treasure... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| attributed to | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 12th century |
Maeda Ikutokukai Maeda Ikutokukai The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| , Kōya edition | unknown | Oldest extant manuscript of the Kokin Wakashū | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... |
Maeda Ikutokukai Maeda Ikutokukai The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| , Gen'ei edition | Oldest complete manuscript of the Kokin Wakashū | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , July 24, 1120 |
Tokyo National Museum Tokyo National Museum Established 1872, the , or TNM, is the oldest and largest museum in Japan. The museum collects, houses, and preserves a comprehensive collection of art works and archaeological objects of Asia, focusing on Japan. The museum holds over 110,000 objects, which includes 87 Japanese National Treasure... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| , Manshu-in edition | unknown | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
Manshu-in, Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| transcription by Fujiwara no Teika Fujiwara no Teika Fujiwara no Teika , also known as Fujiwara no Sadaie or Sada-ie, was a Japanese poet, critic, calligrapher, novelist, anthologist, scribe, and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods... |
With attached imperial letters by Emperor Go-Tsuchimikado Emperor Go-Tsuchimikado was the 103rd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1464 through 1500.... , Emperor Go-Nara Emperor Go-Nara Emperor Go-Nara was the 105th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He reigned from June 9, 1526 until September 27, 1557, at the end of the Sengoku period. His personal name was Tomohito .-Genealogy:He was the second son of Emperor Go-Kashiwabara... and the draft of a letter by Emperor Go-Kashiwabara Emperor Go-Kashiwabara Emperor Go-Kashiwabara was the 104th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He reigned from November 16, 1500 to May 19, 1526. His personal name was Katsuhito... |
Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... , April 9, 1226 |
, Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| , Kōya edition | unknown | Oldest extant manuscript of the Kokin Wakashū | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
private, Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| , Honami edition | unknown | The name of the edition refers to the painter Honami Kōetsu Honami Koetsu was a Japanese craftsman, potter, lacquerer, and calligrapher, whose work is generally considered to have inspired the founding of the Rinpa school of painting.-Early life:... who once owned this scroll; 49 waka Waka (poetry) Waka or Yamato uta is a genre of classical Japanese verse and one of the major genres of Japanese literature... from the twelfth volume ("Poems of Love, II); written on imported, Chinese paper with design of mica-imprinted bamboo and peach blossoms |
late Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
Kyoto National Museum Kyoto National Museum The is one of the three formerly imperially-mandated art museums in Japan. The museum is located in Higashiyama Ward in Kyoto. The collections of the Kyoto National Museum focus on pre-modern Japanese and Asian art.... , Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| , Kōya edition | unknown | Oldest extant manuscript of the Kokin Wakashū | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
Tosa Yamauchi Family Treasury and Archives Tosa Yamauchi Family Treasury and Archives The in Takajō-machi, Kōchi, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan, house historical materials related to the Yamauchi clan, rulers of the Tosa Domain. Going back to an agreement between the Yamauchi family and Kōchi Prefecture from December 9, 1994, this foundation was formally established as a collaboration... , Kōchi Kochi, Kochi is the capital city of Kōchi Prefecture on Shikoku island of Japan.Kōchi is the main city of the prefecture with over 40% of its population. As of May 31, 2008, the city had an estimated population of 340,515 and a density of... , Kōchi Kochi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the south coast of Shikoku. The capital is the city of Kōchi.- History :Prior to the Meiji Restoration, Kōchi was known as Tosa Province and was controlled by the Chosokabe clan in the Sengoku period and the Yamauchi family during the Edo period.- Geography... |
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| , Kōya edition | Oldest extant manuscript of the Kokin Wakashū | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
, Hōfu Hofu, Yamaguchi is a city located in Yamaguchi, Japan.-History:Hōfu means "the capital of Suō Province".The eastern part of Yamaguchi prefecture was formerly called Suō Province.The city was founded on August 25, 1936... , Yamaguchi Yamaguchi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan in the Chūgoku region on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Yamaguchi, in the center of the prefecture. The largest city, however, is Shimonoseki.- History :... |
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| Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 12th century |
, Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| collated by Fujiwara no Teika Fujiwara no Teika Fujiwara no Teika , also known as Fujiwara no Sadaie or Sada-ie, was a Japanese poet, critic, calligrapher, novelist, anthologist, scribe, and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods... |
1,425 poems, primarily those that were rejected for inclusion in the Kokin Wakashū | Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... , March 2, 1234 |
, Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| , ten volume edition | Handed down in the Konoe clan | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
Maeda Ikutokukai Maeda Ikutokukai The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| , ten volume edition | Handed down in the Konoe clan | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
Yōmei Bunko, Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| Poems in two-column style of 30 famous poets including Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Kakinomoto no Hitomaro Kakinomoto no Hitomaro was a Japanese poet and aristocrat of the late Asuka period. He was the most prominent of the poets included in the Man'yōshū, and was particularly represented in volumes 1 and 2. In Japan, he is considered one of the Thirty-six Poetry Immortals... and Ki no Tsurayuki Ki no Tsurayuki was a Japanese author, poet and courtier of the Heian period.Tsurayuki was a son of Ki no Mochiyuki. He became a waka poet in the 890s. In 905, under the order of Emperor Daigo, he was one of four poets selected to compile the Kokin Wakashū, an anthology of poetry.After holding a few offices in... |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , mid 11th century |
, Izumi Izumi, Osaka is a city located in Osaka, Japan.The city was founded on September 1, 1956.As of 2010, the city has an estimated population of 181,935 and the density of 2,140 persons per km². The total area is 84.98 km². It is the last station on the Semboku Kousoku monorail line （泉北高速鉄道） at Izumi Chuo... , Osaka Osaka Prefecture is a prefecture located in the Kansai region on Honshū, the main island of Japan. The capital is the city of Osaka. It is the center of Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto area.- History :... |
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| This scroll was part of the fourth scroll of the ten scroll Poetry Match in Ten Scrolls which was handed down in the Konoe clan; contains 36 of the extant 43 poems from this collection | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
Tokyo National Museum Tokyo National Museum Established 1872, the , or TNM, is the oldest and largest museum in Japan. The museum collects, houses, and preserves a comprehensive collection of art works and archaeological objects of Asia, focusing on Japan. The museum holds over 110,000 objects, which includes 87 Japanese National Treasure... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| Fujiwara no Teika Fujiwara no Teika Fujiwara no Teika , also known as Fujiwara no Sadaie or Sada-ie, was a Japanese poet, critic, calligrapher, novelist, anthologist, scribe, and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods... |
Private anthology of 2,885 poems by Fujiwara no Teika | Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... , 1216 |
, Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| Fujiwara no Shunzei Fujiwara no Shunzei was a noted Japanese poet and nobleman, son of Fujiwara no Toshitada. He was also known as Fujiwara no Toshinari or Shakua ; in his younger days , he gave his name as Akihiro , but in 1167, changed to Shunzei... |
Original (first) edition | Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... , 1197 |
, Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
Maeda Ikutokukai Maeda Ikutokukai The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| Fujiwara no Shunzei Fujiwara no Shunzei was a noted Japanese poet and nobleman, son of Fujiwara no Toshitada. He was also known as Fujiwara no Toshinari or Shakua ; in his younger days , he gave his name as Akihiro , but in 1167, changed to Shunzei... |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 1172 |
Maeda Ikutokukai Maeda Ikutokukai The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| Discussion of the ten waka styles with five examples written in hiragana Hiragana is a Japanese syllabary, one basic component of the Japanese writing system, along with katakana, kanji, and the Latin alphabet . Hiragana and katakana are both kana systems, in which each character represents one mora... each; also named "Ten Styles of Tadamine" after the purported author of the 945 original work, Mibu no Tadamine Mibu no Tadamine Mibu no Tadamine was an early Heian waka poet of the court , and a member of the sanjūrokkasen or Thirty-six Poetry Immortals... ; oldest extant manuscript of this work |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , circa 1000 |
Tokyo National Museum Tokyo National Museum Established 1872, the , or TNM, is the oldest and largest museum in Japan. The museum collects, houses, and preserves a comprehensive collection of art works and archaeological objects of Asia, focusing on Japan. The museum holds over 110,000 objects, which includes 87 Japanese National Treasure... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| , Nishi Hongan-ji Nishi Honganji or the "Western Temple of the Original Vow", is one of two temple complexes of Jodo Shinshu in Kyoto, the other being Higashi Honganji... edition |
unknown | Attached to the nomination is a letter by Emperor Go-Nara Emperor Go-Nara Emperor Go-Nara was the 105th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He reigned from June 9, 1526 until September 27, 1557, at the end of the Sengoku period. His personal name was Tomohito .-Genealogy:He was the second son of Emperor Go-Kashiwabara... |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , around 1100 (32 bound books); Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... (one bound book), Edo period Edo period The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate.... (four bound books) |
Nishi Honganji Nishi Honganji or the "Western Temple of the Original Vow", is one of two temple complexes of Jodo Shinshu in Kyoto, the other being Higashi Honganji... , Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| , 20 volume edition | by Minamoto Masazane and Fujiwara no Tadamichi Fujiwara no Tadamichi was the eldest son of the Japanese regent Fujiwara no Tadazane and a member of the politically powerful Fujiwara clan. He was the father of Fujiwara no Kanefusa and Jien.In the Hōgen Rebellion of 1156, Tadamichi sided with the Emperor Go-Shirakawa.... |
Large scale compilation of poetry contents until 1126; project started by Minamoto Masazane who was later joined by Fujiwara no Tadamichi | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 12th century |
Yōmei Bunko, Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| Re-edited version of the Man'yōshū; poems are categorized by themes such as: season, heaven and earth, and landscape; written in man'yōgana followed by hiragana Hiragana is a Japanese syllabary, one basic component of the Japanese writing system, along with katakana, kanji, and the Latin alphabet . Hiragana and katakana are both kana systems, in which each character represents one mora... . |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , before 1120 |
Ryukoku University Ryukoku University is a private university located in Kyoto, Japan.It was founded as a school for Buddhist monks of the Nishi Hongan-ji denomination in 1639, and became a secularized university in 1876. Professors and students of the university established the famed literary magazine Chūōkōron in 1887. It has three... , Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| Collection of 112 poems by Myōe Myoe Myōe was a Japanese Buddhist monk active during the Kamakura period who also went by the name Kōben , and contemporary of Jōkei and Honen. Born into the Yuasa family , allegedly descended from a branch of the Fujiwara clan, he came to be ordained in both the Shingon school of Buddhism and the... and 43 by other poets, compiled by Myōe's disciple Kōshin on the 17th anniversary of Myōe's death |
Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... , 1248 |
Kyoto National Museum Kyoto National Museum The is one of the three formerly imperially-mandated art museums in Japan. The museum is located in Higashiyama Ward in Kyoto. The collections of the Kyoto National Museum focus on pre-modern Japanese and Asian art.... , Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| Fujiwara no Kintō Fujiwara no Kinto , also known as Shijō-dainagon, was a Japanese poet, admired by his contemporaries and a court bureaucrat of the Heian period. His father was the regent Fujiwara no Yoritada and his son Fujiwara no Sadayori... |
Collection of 101 poems | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 1008 |
Fujita Art Museum Fujita Art Museum The is one of the largest private collections in the Kansai region. The collection was assembled by Fujita Denzaburō and his descendants. It was installed in a storehouse on the family property in Osaka.... , Osaka Osaka is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe... |
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| Minamoto no Shunrai Minamoto no Shunrai was an important and innovative Japanese poet, who compiled the Gosen Wakashū. He was the son of Minamoto no Tsunenobu ; holder of the second rank in court and of the position of Grand Counsellor). Shunrai was favored by Emperor Go-Sanjo and to a lesser degree Emperor Shirakawa; in no small part... and Fujiwara no Teika Fujiwara no Teika Fujiwara no Teika , also known as Fujiwara no Sadaie or Sada-ie, was a Japanese poet, critic, calligrapher, novelist, anthologist, scribe, and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods... (pages 6 and 7) |
Transcription of poetry anthology by | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... |
Maeda Ikutokukai Maeda Ikutokukai The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
Monogatari, Japanese-Chinese poetry, setsuwa
There are ten National Treasures of six works of Japanese prose and mixed Chinese-Japanese poetry compiled from between the early 9th and the first half of the 13th century. The manuscripts in this list date from between the early 10th to the second half of the 13th century. The three volume Nihon RyōikiNihon Ryoiki
is an early Heian period setsuwa collection. Written by Kyōkai between 787 and 824, it is Japan's oldest collection of Buddhist setsuwa. It is three volumes in length.-Title:...
was compiled by the privateAs opposed to a publicly recognized and certified priest ordained by the ritsuryō
Ritsuryo
is the historical law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Chinese Legalism in Japan. The political system in accord to Ritsuryō is called "Ritsuryō-sei"...
state. priest Kyōkai around 822. It is the oldest collection of Japanese anecdotes or folk stories
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
(setsuwa
Setsuwa
is a Japanese literary genre. It consists of myths, legends, folktales, and anecdotes.Setsuwa are based foremost on oral tradition. The stories are told to each other and later committed to text...
) which probably came out of an oral tradition. Combining Buddhism with local folk stories, this work demonstrates karmic
Karma in Buddhism
Karma means "action" or "doing"; whatever one does, says, or thinks is a karma. In Buddhism, the term karma is used specifically for those actions which spring from the intention of an unenlightened being.These bring about a fruit or result Karma (Sanskrit, also karman, Pāli: Kamma) means...
causality and functioned as a handbook for preaching. TwoThey are the so called Kōfuku-ji and Shinpuku-ji manuscripts covering the first volume and the second to third volume respectively. out of fourThe other two manuscripts are the Maeda (vol. 3) and Kōya (fragments of vols. 1 to 3) manuscripts. extant distinct but incomplete manuscripts have been designated as a National Treasures.
One of the earliest kana
Kana
Kana are the syllabic Japanese scripts, as opposed to the logographic Chinese characters known in Japan as kanji and the Roman alphabet known as rōmaji...
materials and one of the oldest extant works of Japanese prose fiction is the Tosa Diary written by Ki no Tsurayuki
Ki no Tsurayuki
was a Japanese author, poet and courtier of the Heian period.Tsurayuki was a son of Ki no Mochiyuki. He became a waka poet in the 890s. In 905, under the order of Emperor Daigo, he was one of four poets selected to compile the Kokin Wakashū, an anthology of poetry.After holding a few offices in...
in 935. It is also the oldest Japanese travel diary
Travel literature
Travel literature is travel writing of literary value. Travel literature typically records the experiences of an author touring a place for the pleasure of travel. An individual work is sometimes called a travelogue or itinerary. Travel literature may be cross-cultural or transnational in focus, or...
, giving an account of a return journey to Kyoto after a four year term as prefect of Tosa Province
Tosa Province
is the name of a former province of Japan in the area that is today Kōchi Prefecture on Shikoku. Tosa was bordered by Iyo and Awa Provinces. It was sometimes called .-History:The ancient capital was near modern Nankoku...
. The diary consists of close to 60 poems,Poetry is used to express personal feelings. connected by prose sections that detail the circumstances and the inspiration for the composition of the poems. The work has been valued as a model for composition in the Japanese style. The original manuscript by Ki no Tsurayuki had been stored at Rengeō-in
Sanjusangen-do
is a Buddhist temple in Higashiyama District of Kyoto, Japan. Officially known as "Rengeō-in" , or Hall of the Lotus King, Sanjūsangen-dō belongs to and is run by the Myoho-in temple, a part of the Tendai school of Buddhism. The temple name literally means Hall with thirty three spaces between...
palace library, and later was in the possession of Ashikaga Yoshimasa
Ashikaga Yoshimasa
was the 8th shogun of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1449 to 1473 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshimasa was the son of the sixth shogun Ashikaga Yoshinori....
, after which its trace is lost. All surviving manuscripts of the Tosa Diary are copies of this Rengeō-in manuscript. The oldest extant of these, by Fujiwara no Teika
Fujiwara no Teika
Fujiwara no Teika , also known as Fujiwara no Sadaie or Sada-ie, was a Japanese poet, critic, calligrapher, novelist, anthologist, scribe, and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods...
, dates to 1235. One year later his son, Fujiwara no Tameie
Fujiwara no Tameie
was a Japanese poet and compiler of Imperial anthologies of poems.Tameie was the second son of poets Teika and Abutuni; and he was the central figure in a circle of Japanese poets after Jōkyū War in 1221. His three sons were Nijō Tameuji, Kyōgoku Tamenori and Reizei Tamesuke...
, produced another copy based on the original. Both transcriptions are complete facsimile
Facsimile
A facsimile is a copy or reproduction of an old book, manuscript, map, art print, or other item of historical value that is as true to the original source as possible. It differs from other forms of reproduction by attempting to replicate the source as accurately as possible in terms of scale,...
s of the original, inclusive of the text, the layout, orthographical usages, and calligraphy.Tameie's transcription contains fewer mistakes than Teika's. They have been designated as National Treasures.
The 984 Sanbō Ekotoba ("The three jewels" or "Tale of the three brothers" or "Notes on the pictures of the three jewels"), was written by Minamoto no Tamenori in Chinese for the amusement of a young tonsured princess. It is a collection of Buddhist tales and a guide to important Buddhist ceremonies and figures in Japanese Buddhist history. The designated manuscript from 1273 is known as the Tōji KanchiinNamed after the Kanchiin subtemple of Tō-ji
To-ji
is a Buddhist temple of the Shingon sect in Kyoto, Japan. Its name means East Temple, and it once had a partner, Sai-ji . They stood alongside the Rashomon, the gate to the Heian capital. It is formally known as which indicates that it previously functioned as a temple providing protection for the...
. manuscript and is the second oldest of the Sanbō Ekotoba. It is virtually complete unlike the late Heian period (Tōdaiji-gire) which is a scattered assortment of fragments.
The cultural interaction between Japan and China is exemplified by the Wakan Rōeishū
Wakan roeishu
The is an anthology of Chinese poems and 31-syllable Japanese waka for singing to fixed melodies .Compiled by Fujiwara no Kintō ca...
, a collection of 234 Chinese poems, 353 poems written in Chinese by Japanese poets (kanshi
Kanshi (poetry)
is a Japanese term for Chinese poetry in general as well as the poetry written in Chinese by Japanese poets. It literally means "Han poetry". Kanshi was the most popular form of poetry during the early Heian period in Japan among Japanese aristocrats and proliferated until the modern period.The...
) and 216 waka
Waka (poetry)
Waka or Yamato uta is a genre of classical Japanese verse and one of the major genres of Japanese literature...
, all arranged by topic. Compiled in the early 11th century by Fujiwara no Kintō
Fujiwara no Kinto
, also known as Shijō-dainagon, was a Japanese poet, admired by his contemporaries and a court bureaucrat of the Heian period. His father was the regent Fujiwara no Yoritada and his son Fujiwara no Sadayori...
, it was the first and most successful work of this genre. The English title, "Japanese-Chinese Recitation Collection" indicates that the poems in this collection were meant to be sung. The Wakan Rōeishū has been valued as a source for poetry recitation, waka composition and for its calligraphy, as it displayed kana and kanji. Three manuscripts of the Wakan Rōeishū written on decorated paper have been designated as National Treasures: the two scrolls at the Kyoto National Museum
Kyoto National Museum
The is one of the three formerly imperially-mandated art museums in Japan. The museum is located in Higashiyama Ward in Kyoto. The collections of the Kyoto National Museum focus on pre-modern Japanese and Asian art....
contain a complete transcription of the work and are a rare and fully developed example of calligraphy on an ashide-eA decorative pictorialized style of calligraphy in which characters are disguised in the shape of reeds (ashi), streams, rocks, flowers, birds, etc. ground; the Konoe edition at Yōmei Bunko is a beautiful example of karakamiAn earth-colored based paper imported from China. with five-colored design (saisen); and the Ōtagire is written on dyed paper decorated with gold drawings.
The Konjaku Monogatarishū
Konjaku Monogatarishu
is a Japanese collection of over one thousand tales written during the late Heian period . The entire collection was originally contained in 31 volumes, of which only 28 remain today...
from ca. 1120 is the most important setsuwa compilation. It is an anonymous collection of more than 1,000 anecdotes or tales. About two-thirds of the tales are Buddhist, telling about the spread of Buddhism from India via China to Japan. As such it is the first world history of Buddhism written in Japanese. This National Treasure is also known as the Suzuka Manuscript and consists of nine volumesOriginally the Konjaku Monogatarishū consisted of 31 volumes of which 28 volumes remain today. covering setsuwa from India (vols. 2 and 5), China (vols. 7, 9, 10) and Japan (vols. 12, 17, 27, 29). It is considered to be the oldest extant manuscript of the Konjaku Monogatarishū and has served as a source for various later manuscripts.
A commentary on the Genji Monogatari by Fujiwara no Teika
Fujiwara no Teika
Fujiwara no Teika , also known as Fujiwara no Sadaie or Sada-ie, was a Japanese poet, critic, calligrapher, novelist, anthologist, scribe, and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods...
, known as Okuiri ("Inside Notes" or "Endnotes") has been designated as a National Treasure.
Written around 1233 it is the second oldest Genji commentary, supplementing the oldest commentary, the Genji Shaku from 1160.
| Name | Authors | Remarks | Date | Format | Present location | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| unknown
| Japan's oldest collection of Buddhist setsuwa
Setsuwa
is a Japanese literary genre. It consists of myths, legends, folktales, and anecdotes.Setsuwa are based foremost on oral tradition. The stories are told to each other and later committed to text...
. Until its discovery in 1973 there was no complete text of the Nihon Ryōiki. A copy of the first volume housed at Kōfuku-ji
Kofuku-ji
is a Buddhist temple in the city of Nara, Nara Prefecture, Japan. The temple is the national headquarters of the Hossō school and is one of the eight Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.-History:...
, Nara
Nara, Nara
is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture...
is also a National Treasure.
|late Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, 12th century
|
| , Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
|
|-
| vol. 1
| unknown
| Japan's oldest collection of Buddhist setsuwa
Setsuwa
is a Japanese literary genre. It consists of myths, legends, folktales, and anecdotes.Setsuwa are based foremost on oral tradition. The stories are told to each other and later committed to text...
. A copy of the second volume housed at , Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
is also a National Treasure.
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, 904
|
| Kōfuku-ji
Kofuku-ji
is a Buddhist temple in the city of Nara, Nara Prefecture, Japan. The temple is the national headquarters of the Hossō school and is one of the eight Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.-History:...
, Nara
Nara, Nara
is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture...
, Nara
Nara Prefecture
is a prefecture in the Kansai region on Honshū Island, Japan. The capital is the city of Nara.-History:The present-day Nara Prefecture was created in 1887, making it independent of Osaka Prefecture....
|
|-
|
|transcription by Fujiwara no Tameie
Fujiwara no Tameie
was a Japanese poet and compiler of Imperial anthologies of poems.Tameie was the second son of poets Teika and Abutuni; and he was the central figure in a circle of Japanese poets after Jōkyū War in 1221. His three sons were Nijō Tameuji, Kyōgoku Tamenori and Reizei Tamesuke...
| Faithful transcription of the 10th century original by Ki no Tsurayuki
Ki no Tsurayuki
was a Japanese author, poet and courtier of the Heian period.Tsurayuki was a son of Ki no Mochiyuki. He became a waka poet in the 890s. In 905, under the order of Emperor Daigo, he was one of four poets selected to compile the Kokin Wakashū, an anthology of poetry.After holding a few offices in...
|Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
, 1236
|
| , Minoh
Minoh, Osaka
, formerly Minoo, is a city in Osaka Prefecture, Japan, about 15 km north of the centre of the city of Osaka. It is accessed by the Hankyu Railway about 30 minutes from Umeda Station...
, Osaka
Osaka Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the Kansai region on Honshū, the main island of Japan. The capital is the city of Osaka. It is the center of Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto area.- History :...
|
|-
|
|transcription by Fujiwara no Teika
Fujiwara no Teika
Fujiwara no Teika , also known as Fujiwara no Sadaie or Sada-ie, was a Japanese poet, critic, calligrapher, novelist, anthologist, scribe, and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods...
| Faithful transcription of the 10th century original by Ki no Tsurayuki
Ki no Tsurayuki
was a Japanese author, poet and courtier of the Heian period.Tsurayuki was a son of Ki no Mochiyuki. He became a waka poet in the 890s. In 905, under the order of Emperor Daigo, he was one of four poets selected to compile the Kokin Wakashū, an anthology of poetry.After holding a few offices in...
|Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
, 1235
|
| Maeda Ikutokukai
Maeda Ikutokukai
The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
|
|-
|
| unknown
| Illustrated interpretation of the three important concepts of Buddhism: Buddha
Buddha
In Buddhism, buddhahood is the state of perfect enlightenment attained by a buddha .In Buddhism, the term buddha usually refers to one who has become enlightened...
, Dharma
Dharma
Dharma means Law or Natural Law and is a concept of central importance in Indian philosophy and religion. In the context of Hinduism, it refers to one's personal obligations, calling and duties, and a Hindu's dharma is affected by the person's age, caste, class, occupation, and gender...
, Sangha
Sangha
Sangha is a word in Pali or Sanskrit that can be translated roughly as "association" or "assembly," "company" or "community" with common goal, vision or purpose...
; copy of an original by (? – 1011)
|Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
, 1273
|
| Tokyo National Museum
Tokyo National Museum
Established 1872, the , or TNM, is the oldest and largest museum in Japan. The museum collects, houses, and preserves a comprehensive collection of art works and archaeological objects of Asia, focusing on Japan. The museum holds over 110,000 objects, which includes 87 Japanese National Treasure...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
|
|-
|
|
| Combination of script and decorative motifs (ashide-e technique): reeds, water fowl, flying birds, rocks and wheels, in navy blue, greenish-blue, brownish-red and silver
|late Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, 1160
|
| Kyoto National Museum
Kyoto National Museum
The is one of the three formerly imperially-mandated art museums in Japan. The museum is located in Higashiyama Ward in Kyoto. The collections of the Kyoto National Museum focus on pre-modern Japanese and Asian art....
, Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
|
|-
| , Konoe edition
|attributed to Fujiwara no Yukinari
Fujiwara no Yukinari
was a Japanese calligrapher during the Heian period. He was memorialized for his prowess in his chosen art by being remembered as one of the outstanding Three Brush Traces , along with Ono no Michikaze and Fujiwara no Sukemasa.-Life:...
| Written on paper imprinted with motifs of plants, tortoise shells and phoenix
Fenghuang
Fenghuang are mythological birds of East Asia that reign over all other birds. The males are called Feng and the females Huang. In modern times, however, such a distinction of gender is often no longer made and the Feng and Huang are blurred into a single feminine entity so that the bird can be...
in mica
Mica
The mica group of sheet silicate minerals includes several closely related materials having highly perfect basal cleavage. All are monoclinic, with a tendency towards pseudohexagonal crystals, and are similar in chemical composition...
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, 11th century
|
| Yōmei Bunko, Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
|
|-
| , fragments of second volume or
|attributed to Fujiwara no Yukinari
Fujiwara no Yukinari
was a Japanese calligrapher during the Heian period. He was memorialized for his prowess in his chosen art by being remembered as one of the outstanding Three Brush Traces , along with Ono no Michikaze and Fujiwara no Sukemasa.-Life:...
| Handed down in the Ōta clan
Ota clan
The was a Japanese samurai clan descended from the Seiwa Genji. The Ota are best known as daimyō of territories on Kyūshū during the Edo period ....
, daimyo
Daimyo
is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...
s of the Kakegawa Domain
Kakegawa Domain
' was a Japanese feudal domain of the Edo period, located in Tōtōmi Province. Kakegawa was primarily a Fudai domain. It was centered at Kakegawa Castle in what is now Kakegawa, Shizuoka.-History:...
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, early 11th century
|
| Seikadō Bunko Art Museum
Seikadō Bunko Art Museum
is a museum of East Asian art in Setagaya, Tokyo.-History:The core collection of the museum was created by Yanosuke Iwasaki , the second president of Mitsubishi in its earliest form. "Seikado" was the studio-name of this corporate leader....
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
|
|-
|
| unknown
| Collection of tales
|late Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
|
| Kyoto University
Kyoto University
, or is a national university located in Kyoto, Japan. It is the second oldest Japanese university, and formerly one of Japan's Imperial Universities.- History :...
, Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
|
|-
|
| Fujiwara no Teika
Fujiwara no Teika
Fujiwara no Teika , also known as Fujiwara no Sadaie or Sada-ie, was a Japanese poet, critic, calligrapher, novelist, anthologist, scribe, and scholar of the late Heian and early Kamakura periods...
| Oldest extant commentary on The Tale of Genji
The Tale of Genji
is a classic work of Japanese literature attributed to the Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu in the early 11th century, around the peak of the Heian period. It is sometimes called the world's first novel, the first modern novel, the first psychological novel or the first novel still to be...
|Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
, c. 1233
|
| private, Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
|
|}
History books and historical tales
The oldest knownOlder texts such as the TennōkiTennoki
, alternatively known as Sumera Mikoto no Fumi, is a historical text purported to have been written in 620 by Shōtoku Taishi and Soga no Umako. It is recorded in the Nihon Shoki, but no extant copies are known to exist....
, Kokki
Kokki
, alternatively known as Kuni tsu Fumi and literally meaning "National Record", is a historical text purported to have been written in 620 by Shōtoku Taishi and Soga no Umako. It is recorded in the Nihon Shoki, but there are no known extant copies...
, Kyūji
Kyuji
, also known as and , is an ancient Japanese historical text. Its existence is recorded in the Kojiki which claims to have been composed based on its contents...
or Teiki
Teiki
The is a historical text purported to have been compiled in 681. The text is no longer extant.-Background:According to the Nihon Shoki: On the seventeenth day, the emperor, residing in his place in the Daigokuden, commanded Prince Kawashima, Prince Osakabe [etc...] to record a definitive edition...
from the 7th century have been lost, while others such as the Sangyō Gisho
Sangyo Gisho
The , literally "Annotated Commentaries on the Three Sutras," is the title of three annotated commentaries on important Buddhist sutras: , , and .-Hokke Gisho:...
or the Taihō Code
Taiho Code
The was an administrative reorganization enacted in 701 in Japan, at the end of the Asuka period. It was historically one of the . It was compiled at the direction of Prince Osakabe, Fujiwara no Fuhito and Awata no Mahito...
are relatively short or only exist as fragments. JapaneseComposed in Japan on Japanese topics; most notably, the Japanese language
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
is not meant here. large-scale works are historical books (Kojiki
Kojiki
is the oldest extant chronicle in Japan, dating from the early 8th century and composed by Ō no Yasumaro at the request of Empress Gemmei. The Kojiki is a collection of myths concerning the origin of the four home islands of Japan, and the Kami...
and Nihon Shoki
Nihon Shoki
The , sometimes translated as The Chronicles of Japan, is the second oldest book of classical Japanese history. It is more elaborate and detailed than the Kojiki, the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeologists as it includes the most complete extant historical...
) or regional cultural and geographical records (fudoki
Fudoki
are ancient records of the culture and geography of provinces of Japan. They contain agricultural, geographical, historical and mythological records, as well as folklore.Compilation of Fudoki began in 713 and was completed over a 20-year period....
) compiled on imperial order in the early 8th century. They were written with the aim of legitimizing the new centralized state under imperial rule by linking the origin of emperors to the Age of the Gods. The oldest of these historical books is the Kojiki ("Record of ancient matters") dating from 712 and composed by Ō no Yasumaro
O no Yasumaro
was a Japanese nobleman, bureaucrat, and chronicler. He may have been the son of , a participant in the Jinshin War of 672.He is most famous for compiling and editing, with the assistance of Hieda no Are, the Kojiki, the oldest extant Japanese history. Empress Genmei was a Japanese nobleman,...
at the request of Empress Gemmei
Empress Gemmei
, also known as Empress Genmyō, was the 43rd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Gemmei's reign spanned the years 707 through 715....
. Written in ancient Japanese style using Chinese ideographs
Ideogram
An ideogram or ideograph is a graphic symbol that represents an idea or concept. Some ideograms are comprehensible only by familiarity with prior convention; others convey their meaning through pictorial resemblance to a physical object, and thus may also be referred to as pictograms.Examples of...
, it presents the mythological origin of Japan
Japanese mythology
Japanese mythology is a system of beliefs that embraces Shinto and Buddhist traditions as well as agriculturally based folk religion. The Shinto pantheon comprises innumerable kami...
and historical events up to the year 628. Shortly after the completion of the Kojiki, the Nihon Shoki (or Nihongi) appeared in 720, probably originating to an order by Emperor Tenmu in 681. It is a much more detailed version of the Kojiki, dating events and providing alternative versions of myths; it covers the time up to 697. Compared to the Kojiki, it follows the model of Chinese dynastic histories
Twenty-Four Histories
The Twenty-Four Histories is a collection of Chinese historical books covering a period from 3000 BC to the Ming Dynasty in the 17th century. The whole set contains 3213 volumes and about 40 million words...
more closely in style and language, using orthodox classical Chinese. Both of these works provide the historical and spiritual basis for shinto
Shinto
or Shintoism, also kami-no-michi, is the indigenous spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people. It is a set of practices, to be carried out diligently, to establish a connection between present day Japan and its ancient past. Shinto practices were first recorded and codified in the written...
.
In 713, Empress Gemmei
Empress Gemmei
, also known as Empress Genmyō, was the 43rd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Gemmei's reign spanned the years 707 through 715....
ordered provincial governors to compile official reports on the history, geography and local folk customs. These provincial gazetteer
Gazetteer
A gazetteer is a geographical dictionary or directory, an important reference for information about places and place names , used in conjunction with a map or a full atlas. It typically contains information concerning the geographical makeup of a country, region, or continent as well as the social...
s are known as fudoki (lit. "Records of wind and earth") and provide valuable information about economic and ethnographic data, local culture and tales. Of more than 60 provincial records compiled in the early 8th century only five survived: one, the Izumo
Izumo Province
was an old province of Japan which today consists of the eastern part of Shimane Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province is in the Chūgoku Region.- History :It was one of the regions of ancient Japan where major political powers arose...
Fudoki (733), in complete form and four, Bungo
Bungo Province
was a province of Japan in eastern Kyūshū in the area of Ōita Prefecture. It was sometimes called , with Buzen Province. Bungo bordered Buzen, Hyūga, Higo, Chikugo, and Chikuzen Provinces.-History:...
(730s), Harima
Harima Province
or Banshu was a province of Japan in the part of Honshū that is the southwestern part of present-day Hyōgo Prefecture. Harima bordered on Tajima, Tamba, Settsu, Bizen, and Mimasaka Provinces. Its capital was Himeji....
(circa 715), Hitachi
Hitachi Province
was an old province of Japan in the area of Ibaraki Prefecture. It was sometimes called . Hitachi Province bordered on Iwashiro, Iwaki, Shimousa, and Shimotsuke Provinces....
(714–718) and Hizen
Hizen Province
was an old province of Japan in the area of Saga and Nagasaki prefectures. It was sometimes called , with Higo Province. Hizen bordered on the provinces of Chikuzen and Chikugo. The province was included in Saikaidō...
(730s) as fragments. The Nihon Shoki is the first official history of Japan and the first of a set of six national histories (Rikkokushi
Rikkokushi
is a general term for Japan's six national histories chronicling the mythology and history of Japan from the earliest times to AD 887. The six histories were written at the imperial court during the eighth and ninth centuries, under order of the Emperors...
) compiled over a 200 year period on Chinese models. Based on these six histories, Sugawara no Michizane
Sugawara no Michizane
, also known as Kan Shōjō , a grandson of Sugawara no Kiyotomo , was a scholar, poet, and politician of the Heian Period of Japan...
arranged historical events chronologically and thematically in the Ruijū Kokushi
Ruiju Kokushi
is a historical text that categorizes and chronologizes the events listed in the Six National Histories. It was compiled by Sugawara no Michizane and completed in 892. The text was commissioned by Emperor Uda.-Contents:...
which was completed in 892.
With the cessation of official missions to China and a general trend of turning away from Chinese-derived institutions and behavioral patterns in the latter part of the 9th century, the compilation of such national histories patterned on formal Chinese dynastic histories was abandoned. With the development of kana
Kana
Kana are the syllabic Japanese scripts, as opposed to the logographic Chinese characters known in Japan as kanji and the Roman alphabet known as rōmaji...
script, new styles of uniquely Japanese literature such as the monogatari
Monogatari
is a literary form in traditional Japanese literature, an extended prose narrative tale comparable to the epic. Monogatari is closely tied to aspects of the oral tradition, and almost always relates a fictional or fictionalized story, even when retelling a historical event...
appeared around that time. The newer style of historic writing that emerged during the Fujiwara regency, at the turning point of ancient imperial rule and the classical era, was called historic tale (rekishi monogatari) and became influenced by the fictional tale, especially by the Tale of Genji, with which it shared the scene-by-scene construction as fundamental difference to earlier historic writings.Other differences are: a realistic dialogue, the presentation of more than one viewpoint and the embellishment with a wealth of realistic detail. The oldest historical tale is the Eiga Monogatari
Eiga monogatari
is a Japanese monogatari, or epic, which relates events in the life of courtier Fujiwara no Michinaga. It is believed to have been written by a number of authors, over the course of roughly a century, from 1028 to 1107....
("A Tale of Flowering Fortunes"), giving a eulogistic chronological account of the Fujiwara from 946 to 1027, focusing particularly on Fujiwara Michinaga. It was largely30 out of 40 volumes. written by Akazome Emon
Akazome Emon
was a Japanese waka poet who lived in the mid-Heian period. She is a member both of the and the .-Biography:Emon is though to be the daughter of Akazome Tokimochi, but her biological father was likely her mother's first husband, Taira Kanemori. Emon was born before her mother's marriage to...
, probably shortly after the death of Michinaga in 1027.
There are eleven National Treasures in the category of historical books including one manuscript of the Kojiki, five manuscripts of the Nihon Shoki, the Harima and Hizen Fudoki, two manuscripts of the Ruijū Kokushi and one of the Eiga Monogatari.
All of these treasures are later copies and with the exception of the Eiga Monogatari, the complete content of the works has to be assembled from several of these (and other) fragmentary manuscripts or be inferred from other sources. The Kojiki, long neglected by scholars until the 18th century, was not preserved as well as the Nihon Shoki which has been studied from soon after its compilation. While being the oldest text in this list, the extant manuscript dating to the 14th century is in fact the youngest entry.
| Name | Authors | Remarks | Date | Format | Present location | Image |
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| , | transcription by the monk | Oldest extant manuscript of the Kojiki | Nanboku-chō period, 1371–1372 | , Nagoya Nagoya, Aichi is the third-largest incorporated city and the fourth most populous urban area in Japan.Located on the Pacific coast in the Chūbu region on central Honshu, it is the capital of Aichi Prefecture and is one of Japan's major ports along with those of Tokyo, Osaka, Kobe, Yokohama, Chiba, and Moji... , Aichi Aichi Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region. The region of Aichi is also known as the Tōkai region. The capital is Nagoya. It is the focus of the Chūkyō Metropolitan Area.- History :... |
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| , Maeda edition | unknown | Part of the six national histories (Rikkokushi Rikkokushi is a general term for Japan's six national histories chronicling the mythology and history of Japan from the earliest times to AD 887. The six histories were written at the imperial court during the eighth and ninth centuries, under order of the Emperors... ); handed down in the Maeda clan Maeda clan The was a branch of the Sugawara clan who descended from Sugawara no Kiyotomo and Sugawara no Michizane in the eighth and ninth centuries. It was one of the most powerful samurai families in Japan and they were second only to the Tokugawa clan in rice production and fief size... |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 11th century |
Maeda Ikutokukai Maeda Ikutokukai The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| , Iwasaki edition | unknown | Part of the six national histories (Rikkokushi Rikkokushi is a general term for Japan's six national histories chronicling the mythology and history of Japan from the earliest times to AD 887. The six histories were written at the imperial court during the eighth and ninth centuries, under order of the Emperors... ); handed down in the Iwasaki family |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , around 1100 |
Kyoto National Museum Kyoto National Museum The is one of the three formerly imperially-mandated art museums in Japan. The museum is located in Higashiyama Ward in Kyoto. The collections of the Kyoto National Museum focus on pre-modern Japanese and Asian art.... , Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| , Yoshida edition | With a postscript by Urabe Kanekata; handed down in the Yoshida branch of the Urabe family; part of the six national histories (Rikkokushi Rikkokushi is a general term for Japan's six national histories chronicling the mythology and history of Japan from the earliest times to AD 887. The six histories were written at the imperial court during the eighth and ninth centuries, under order of the Emperors... ) |
Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... , 1286 |
Kyoto National Museum Kyoto National Museum The is one of the three formerly imperially-mandated art museums in Japan. The museum is located in Higashiyama Ward in Kyoto. The collections of the Kyoto National Museum focus on pre-modern Japanese and Asian art.... , Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| , Yoshida edition | transcription and postscript by | Handed down in the Yoshida branch of the Urabe family; part of the six national histories (Rikkokushi Rikkokushi is a general term for Japan's six national histories chronicling the mythology and history of Japan from the earliest times to AD 887. The six histories were written at the imperial court during the eighth and ninth centuries, under order of the Emperors... ) |
Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... , 1303 |
, Tenri Tenri, Nara is a city located in Nara, Japan. Tenri is the only city in Japan to be named after a religious group, the new religious movement Tenrikyo which has its headquarters in the city and believes it to be one among other energy centers of the world. Tenrikyo had recommended the name Yamabe, which is the... , Nara Nara Prefecture is a prefecture in the Kansai region on Honshū Island, Japan. The capital is the city of Nara.-History:The present-day Nara Prefecture was created in 1887, making it independent of Osaka Prefecture.... |
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| , Tanaka edition | unknown | Oldest extant transcription of The Chronicles of Japan; considered to be stylistically close to the original from 720; contains a copy of the Collected Writings of Kūkai from the late Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... on the back |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 9th century |
Nara National Museum Nara National Museum The is one of the pre-eminent national art museums in Japan.-Introduction:The Nara National Museum is located in Nara, which was the capital of Japan from 710 to 784. Katayama Tōkuma designed the original building, which is a representative Western-style building of the Meiji period and has been... , Nara Nara, Nara is the capital city of Nara Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. The city occupies the northern part of Nara Prefecture, directly bordering Kyoto Prefecture... , Nara Nara Prefecture is a prefecture in the Kansai region on Honshū Island, Japan. The capital is the city of Nara.-History:The present-day Nara Prefecture was created in 1887, making it independent of Osaka Prefecture.... |
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| unknown | Transcription of an ancient record of culture and geography from the early Nara period Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from AD 710 to 794. Empress Gemmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō . Except for 5 years , when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capital of Japanese civilization until Emperor Kammu established a new capital, Nagaoka-kyō, in 784... ; oldest extant fudoki manuscript |
end of Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... |
, Tenri Tenri, Nara is a city located in Nara, Japan. Tenri is the only city in Japan to be named after a religious group, the new religious movement Tenrikyo which has its headquarters in the city and believes it to be one among other energy centers of the world. Tenrikyo had recommended the name Yamabe, which is the... , Nara Nara Prefecture is a prefecture in the Kansai region on Honshū Island, Japan. The capital is the city of Nara.-History:The present-day Nara Prefecture was created in 1887, making it independent of Osaka Prefecture.... |
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| unknown | Transcription of an ancient record of culture and geography from the early Nara period Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from AD 710 to 794. Empress Gemmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō . Except for 5 years , when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capital of Japanese civilization until Emperor Kammu established a new capital, Nagaoka-kyō, in 784... |
Kamakura period Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo.... |
Owner: private; Custody of: , Takamatsu Takamatsu, Kagawa is a city located in central Kagawa Prefecture on the island of Shikoku in Japan, and is the seat of the prefectural government. It is designated a core city by the Japanese Government. It is a port city located on the Seto Inland Sea, and is the closest port to Honshu from Shikoku island... , Kagawa Prefecture Kagawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on Shikoku island. The capital is Takamatsu.- History :Kagawa was formerly known as Sanuki Province.For a brief period between August 1876 and December 1888, Kagawa was made a part of Ehime Prefecture.-Battle of Yashima:... |
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| unknown
| Collected by Maeda Tsunanori
Maeda Tsunanori
was a Japanese daimyo of the early Edo period who ruled the Kaga Domain....
; one of the oldest extant manuscript of the Ruijū Kokushi
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, 12th century
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| Maeda Ikutokukai
Maeda Ikutokukai
The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
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| unknown
| Formerly in the possession of , a doctor of literature at the Kyoto Imperial University; one of the oldest extant manuscript of the Ruijū Kokushi
|late Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
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| Tohoku University
Tohoku University
, abbreviated to , located in the city of Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture in the Tōhoku Region, Japan, is a Japanese national university. It is the third oldest Imperial University in Japan and is a member of the National Seven Universities...
, Sendai
Sendai, Miyagi
is the capital city of Miyagi Prefecture, Japan, and the largest city in the Tōhoku Region. In 2005, the city had a population of one million, and was one of Japan's 19 designated cities...
, Miyagi
Miyagi Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku Region on Honshu island. The capital is Sendai.- History :Miyagi Prefecture was formerly part of the province of Mutsu. Mutsu Province, on northern Honshu, was one of the last provinces to be formed as land was taken from the indigenous Emishi, and became the...
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| unknown
| Epic about the life of the courtier
Kuge
The was a Japanese aristocratic class that dominated the Japanese imperial court in Kyoto until the rise of the Shogunate in the 12th century at which point it was eclipsed by the daimyo...
Fujiwara no Michinaga
Fujiwara no Michinaga
represents the highpoint of the Fujiwara regents' control over the government of Japan.-Early life:He was the fourth or fifth son of Fujiwara no Kaneie by his wife Tokihime, daughter of Fujiwara no Nakamasa...
; oldest extant manuscript; handed down in the Sanjōnishi family
|Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
(Ōgata: mid-Kamakura, Masugata: early Kamakura)
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| Kyushu National Museum
Kyushu National Museum
The opened on October 16, 2005 in Dazaifu near Fukuoka -- the first new national museum in Japan in over 100 years, and the first to elevate the focus on history over art. The distinct modern impression created by the architectural facade is mirrored in the Museum's use of technological...
, Dazaifu
Dazaifu, Fukuoka
is a city located in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. Nearby cities include Ōnojō and Chikushino. Although mostly urban, it does have arable land used for paddy fields and market gardening....
, Fukuoka
Fukuoka Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on Kyūshū Island. The capital is the city of Fukuoka.- History :Fukuoka Prefecture includes the former provinces of Chikugo, Chikuzen, and Buzen....
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Others
There are 18 Japanese book National Treasures that do not belong to any of the above categories. They cover 14 works of various types, including biographies, law or rulebooks, temple records, music scoresSheet music
Sheet music is a hand-written or printed form of music notation that uses modern musical symbols; like its analogs—books, pamphlets, etc.—the medium of sheet music typically is paper , although the access to musical notation in recent years includes also presentation on computer screens...
, a medical book and dictionaries. Two of the oldest works designated are biographies of the Asuka period
Asuka period
The , was a period in the history of Japan lasting from 538 to 710 , although its beginning could be said to overlap with the preceding Kofun period...
regent Shōtoku Taishi
Prince Shotoku
, also known as or , was a semi-legendary regent and a politician of the Asuka period in Japan who served under Empress Suiko. He was a son of Emperor Yōmei and his younger half-sister Princess Anahobe no Hashihito. His parents were relatives of the ruling Soga clan, and was involved in the defeat...
. The Shitennō-ji Engi, alleged to have been an autobiography by Prince Shōtoku, described Shitennō-ji
Shitenno-ji
is a Buddhist temple in Osaka, Japan.Prince Shōtoku is said to have constructed this temple in 593. It is the first Buddhist and oldest officially administered temple in Japan, although the temple buildings have been rebuilt over the centuries. Most of the present structures are from when the...
, and may have been created to promote the temple. The Shitennō-ji Engi National Treasure consists of two manuscripts: the alleged original discovered in 1007 at Shitennō-ji and a later transcription by Emperor Go-Daigo
Emperor Go-Daigo
Emperor Go-Daigo was the 96th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession....
. Written by imperial order in the early 8th century, the Jōgū Shōtoku Hōō Teisetsu
Jogu Shotoku Hoo Teisetsu
, also read as Jōgū Shōtoku Hōō Taisetsu, is a biography of Shōtoku Taishi. It is one scroll in length and is a National Treasures of Japan.-Background:...
is the oldest extant biography of Shōtoku. It consists of a collection of anecdotes, legendary and miraculous in nature, which emphasize Shōtoku's Buddhist activities for the sake of imperial legitimacy, and stands at the beginning of Buddhist setsuwa literature. The oldest extant manuscript of the 803 Enryaku Kōtaishiki, a compendium of rules concerned with the change of provincial governors from 782 to 803, has been designated as a National Treasure.
The oldest extant Japanese lexica date to the early Heian period. Based on the Chinese Yupian
Yupian
The Yupian is a circa 543 CE Chinese dictionary edited by Gu Yewang during the Liang Dynasty. It arranges 12,158 character entries under 542 radicals, which differ somewhat from the original 540 in the Shuowen Jiezi...
, the Tenrei Banshō Meigi
Tenrei Bansho Meigi
The is the oldest extant Japanese dictionary of Chinese characters. The title is also written 篆隷万象名義 with the modern graphic variant ban for ban ....
was compiled around 830 by Kūkai
Kukai
Kūkai , also known posthumously as , 774–835, was a Japanese monk, civil servant, scholar, poet, and artist, founder of the Shingon or "True Word" school of Buddhism. Shingon followers usually refer to him by the honorific titles of and ....
and is the oldest extant character
Chinese character
Chinese characters are logograms used in the writing of Chinese and Japanese , less frequently Korean , formerly Vietnamese , or other languages...
dictionary made in Japan. The Hifuryaku is a massive Chinese dictionary in 1000 fascicles listing the usage of words and characters in more than 1500 texts of diverse genres. Compiled in 831 by Shigeno Sadanushi and others, it is the oldest extant Japanese proto-encyclopedia
Japanese encyclopedias
In Japanese, encyclopedias are known as hyakka jiten , which literally means "book of a hundred subjects," and can trace their origins to the early Heian period, in the ninth century. Encyclopedic works were published in Japan for well over a thousand years before Japan's first modern encyclopedias...
. There are two National Treasures of the Ishinpō
Ishinpo
is the oldest surviving Japanese medical text. It was written by Yasuyori Tamba in 984 and is 30 volumes in length. The work is based on the Chinese Bìng Yuánhóu lún, written by Suí Dynasty author Cháo Yuánfāng. Many of the Ishinpō texts have been lost in China, and have only survived to the...
, the oldest extant medical treatise of Japanese authorship compiled in 984 by Tanba Yasuyori. It is based on a large number of Chinese medical and pharmaceutical texts and contains knowledge about drug prescription, herbal lore, hygiene, acupuncture, moxibustion
Moxibustion
Moxibustion is a traditional Chinese medicine therapy using moxa, or mugwort herb. It plays an important role in the traditional medical systems of China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, Tibet, and Mongolia. Suppliers usually age the mugwort and grind it up to a fluff; practitioners burn the fluff or...
, alchemy and magic. The two associated treasures consist of the oldest extant (partial) and the oldest extant complete manuscript respectively.
Compiled between 905 and 927 by Tadahira, the Engishiki
Engishiki
-History:In 905 Emperor Daigo ordered the compilation of a new set of laws. Fujiwara no Tokihira began the task, but work stalled when he died four years later in 909. His brother Fujiwara no Tadahira continued the work in 912 eventually completing it in 927...
is the most respected legal compendium of the ritsuryō
Ritsuryo
is the historical law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Chinese Legalism in Japan. The political system in accord to Ritsuryō is called "Ritsuryō-sei"...
age and an important resource for the study of the Heian period court system. Emperor Daigo
Emperor Daigo
was the 60th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Daigo's reign spanned the years from 897 through 930. He is named after his place of burial.-Traditional narrative:...
commanded its compilation; the Engishiki is according to David Lu an "invaluable" resource and "one of the greatest compilations of laws and precedents". The three designated National Treasures of the Engishiki represent the oldest extant manuscript (Kujō edition) and the oldest extant edition of certain date (Kongōji edition). Two National Treasure manuscripts are related to music: the oldest extant kagura
Kagura
- Fictional characters :*Kagura Tsuchimiya, the protagonist of Ga-rei*Kagura, an InuYasha character*Kagura Sohma , a Fruits Basket character*Kagura, an Azumanga Daioh character*Ten'nōzu Kagura, a Speed Grapher character...
song book (Kagura wagon hifu) from around the 10th century and the oldest extant Saibara
Saibara
Saibara is a genre of accompanied vocal Japanese court music that existed during the Heian period in the Nara and Kyoto regions. It draws from traditional folk music of the Nara period...
score (Saibara fu) which is traditionally attributed to Prince Munetaka
Prince Munetaka
Prince Munetaka was the sixth shogun of the Kamakura shogunate of Japan who reigned .He was the first son of the Emperor Go-Saga and replaced the deposed Kujō Yoritsugu as shogun at the age of ten...
but based on the calligraphy it appears to date to the mid-11th century. The Hokuzanshō consists of writings by Fujiwara no Kintō
Fujiwara no Kinto
, also known as Shijō-dainagon, was a Japanese poet, admired by his contemporaries and a court bureaucrat of the Heian period. His father was the regent Fujiwara no Yoritada and his son Fujiwara no Sadayori...
on court customs and the function of the Daijō-kan. The designated Kyoto National Museum manuscript of the Hokuzanshō from about 1000 is noted for one of the few early extant examples of hiragana
Hiragana
is a Japanese syllabary, one basic component of the Japanese writing system, along with katakana, kanji, and the Latin alphabet . Hiragana and katakana are both kana systems, in which each character represents one mora...
use and for the oldest extant letters in kana
Kana
Kana are the syllabic Japanese scripts, as opposed to the logographic Chinese characters known in Japan as kanji and the Roman alphabet known as rōmaji...
written on the reverse side of the scroll. Around the early 12th century a Shingon Buddhist priest compiled a dictionary with a large number of variant form characters
Variant Chinese character
Variant Chinese characters are Chinese characters that are homophones and synonyms. Almost all variants are allographs in most circumstances, such as casual handwriting...
known as Ruiju Myōgishō
Ruiju Myogisho
The , alternatively misread as Ruijū myōgishō, is a Japanese dictionary from the late Heian Period. The title, sometimes abbreviated as Myōgishō, combines the ruiju from the Wamyō Ruijushō and the myōgi from the Tenrei Banshō Myōgi...
. The designated Kanchiin edition is the oldest extant complete manuscript of this work. Among the youngest items in this list are two temple records: the Omuro Sōjōki giving an account of priests of imperial lineage at Ninna-ji
Ninna-ji
is the head temple of the Omuro school of the Shingon Sect of Buddhism. Located in western Kyoto, Japan, it was founded in AD 888 by the retired Emperor Uda. It is part of the "Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto", a UNESCO World Heritage Site.-History:...
starting from the Kanpyō era, while the 1352 Tōhōki records treasures held at Tō-ji
To-ji
is a Buddhist temple of the Shingon sect in Kyoto, Japan. Its name means East Temple, and it once had a partner, Sai-ji . They stood alongside the Rashomon, the gate to the Heian capital. It is formally known as which indicates that it previously functioned as a temple providing protection for the...
. Kōbō Daishi's biography in an original manuscript penned by Emperor Go-Uda
Emperor Go-Uda
Emperor Go-Uda was the 91st emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession...
in 1315 has been designated as a National Treasure.
| Name | Authors | Remarks | Date | Format | Present location | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prince Shōtoku Prince Shotoku , also known as or , was a semi-legendary regent and a politician of the Asuka period in Japan who served under Empress Suiko. He was a son of Emperor Yōmei and his younger half-sister Princess Anahobe no Hashihito. His parents were relatives of the ruling Soga clan, and was involved in the defeat... (?) and Emperor Go-Daigo Emperor Go-Daigo Emperor Go-Daigo was the 96th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.... (transcription) |
Document on the origin of Shitennō-ji Shitenno-ji is a Buddhist temple in Osaka, Japan.Prince Shōtoku is said to have constructed this temple in 593. It is the first Buddhist and oldest officially administered temple in Japan, although the temple buildings have been rebuilt over the centuries. Most of the present structures are from when the... and transcription |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... and Nanboku-chō period, 1335 |
Shitennō-ji Shitenno-ji is a Buddhist temple in Osaka, Japan.Prince Shōtoku is said to have constructed this temple in 593. It is the first Buddhist and oldest officially administered temple in Japan, although the temple buildings have been rebuilt over the centuries. Most of the present structures are from when the... , Osaka Osaka is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe... |
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| unknown | Biography of Shōtoku Taishi | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 1050 (parts written by early 8th century) |
Chion-in, Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| unknown | Oldest extant copy of the original from 803 | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , around 859–877 |
Ishiyama-dera Ishiyama-dera is a Shingon temple in Ōtsu in Japan's Shiga Prefecture. It was constructed around 762 CE, and is said to have been founded by Rōben. The temple contains a number of cultural assets... , Ōtsu Otsu, Shiga is the capital city of Shiga, Japan. The city was founded on October 1, 1898. As of October 1, 2010, the city has an estimated population of 338,629 with an average age of 40.7 years and a population density of 905.28 persons per km²... , Shiga Shiga Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan, which forms part of the Kansai region on Honshu Island. The capital is the city of Ōtsu.- History :Shiga was known as Ōmi Province or Gōshū before the prefectural system was established... |
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| unknown | Oldest extant Kanji Kanji Kanji are the adopted logographic Chinese characters hanzi that are used in the modern Japanese writing system along with hiragana , katakana , Indo Arabic numerals, and the occasional use of the Latin alphabet... dictionary. Transcription of the original by Kūkai Kukai Kūkai , also known posthumously as , 774–835, was a Japanese monk, civil servant, scholar, poet, and artist, founder of the Shingon or "True Word" school of Buddhism. Shingon followers usually refer to him by the honorific titles of and .... from around 830–835 |
Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... , 1114 |
Kōzan-ji Kozan-ji , or , is an Omuro Buddhist temple located in Ume-ga-hata Toganoo-chō, Ukyō Ward, Kyoto, Japan. The temple was founded by famous monk Myōe and is renowned for its numerous national treasures and important cultural properties, in particular the famous picture scroll called Chōjū-giga. The temple... , Kyoto Kyoto is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:... |
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| unknown | Part of the 1000 scrolls Hifuryaku, the oldest Japanese proto-encyclopedia from 831 | Heian period Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height... |
Maeda Ikutokukai Maeda Ikutokukai The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo... , Tokyo Tokyo , ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family... |
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| unknown
| Handed down in the Nakarai family; oldest extant transcription of this work
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, 12th century27 scrolls from Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, one scroll from Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
, two scrolls and one bound manuscript added in Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
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| Tokyo National Museum
Tokyo National Museum
Established 1872, the , or TNM, is the oldest and largest museum in Japan. The museum collects, houses, and preserves a comprehensive collection of art works and archaeological objects of Asia, focusing on Japan. The museum holds over 110,000 objects, which includes 87 Japanese National Treasure...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
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| unknown
| Thought to be closer to the original as it contains fewer annotations than the Nakarai edition of the Ishinpō
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
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| Ninna-ji
Ninna-ji
is the head temple of the Omuro school of the Shingon Sect of Buddhism. Located in western Kyoto, Japan, it was founded in AD 888 by the retired Emperor Uda. It is part of the "Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto", a UNESCO World Heritage Site.-History:...
, Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
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| , Kujō edition
| unknown (more than one person)
| Handed down in the Kujō family
Kujō family
The Kujō family was a Japanese noble family and a branch of the Fujiwara clan derived from Fujiwara no Tadamichi. They were counted as one of the Sekke, the five regent houses and therefore one of the most politically powerful families among the kuge .As one of the Sekke, the five regent houses,...
; the reverse side of 23 of these scrolls contain about 190 letters; oldest extant and most complete copy of Engishiki
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, 11th century
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| Tokyo National Museum
Tokyo National Museum
Established 1872, the , or TNM, is the oldest and largest museum in Japan. The museum collects, houses, and preserves a comprehensive collection of art works and archaeological objects of Asia, focusing on Japan. The museum holds over 110,000 objects, which includes 87 Japanese National Treasure...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
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| Kongōji edition
| unknown
| Oldest extant Engishiki manuscript of certain date
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, 1127
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|, Kawachinagano
Kawachinagano, Osaka
is a city located in Osaka, Japan.As of 2010, the city has an estimated population of 112,696 and the density of 1,030 persons per km². The total area is 109.61 km².The city was founded on April 1, 1954.-Claims to fame:...
, Osaka
Osaka Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the Kansai region on Honshū, the main island of Japan. The capital is the city of Osaka. It is the center of Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto area.- History :...
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| unknown
| Volumes 9 and 10 of the Engishiki
Engishiki
-History:In 905 Emperor Daigo ordered the compilation of a new set of laws. Fujiwara no Tokihira began the task, but work stalled when he died four years later in 909. His brother Fujiwara no Tadahira continued the work in 912 eventually completing it in 927...
contain a register of Shinto shrines
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, 1127
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|, Kawachinagano
Kawachinagano, Osaka
is a city located in Osaka, Japan.As of 2010, the city has an estimated population of 112,696 and the density of 1,030 persons per km². The total area is 109.61 km².The city was founded on April 1, 1954.-Claims to fame:...
, Osaka
Osaka Prefecture
is a prefecture located in the Kansai region on Honshū, the main island of Japan. The capital is the city of Osaka. It is the center of Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto area.- History :...
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| Oldest extant kagura song book
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, 10th–11th century
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| Yōmei Bunko, Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
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| unknown
| Transcription of the early 11th century original by Fujiwara no Kintō
Fujiwara no Kinto
, also known as Shijō-dainagon, was a Japanese poet, admired by his contemporaries and a court bureaucrat of the Heian period. His father was the regent Fujiwara no Yoritada and his son Fujiwara no Sadayori...
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
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| Maeda Ikutokukai
Maeda Ikutokukai
The foundation is a public interest corporation established on February 26, 1926 for the management and preservation of the cultural heritage of the Maeda clan, rulers of the Kaga Domain. It is located in Komaba, Meguro, Tokyo...
, Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
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| Fujiwara no Kintō
Fujiwara no Kinto
, also known as Shijō-dainagon, was a Japanese poet, admired by his contemporaries and a court bureaucrat of the Heian period. His father was the regent Fujiwara no Yoritada and his son Fujiwara no Sadayori...
| Draft to the Manual on Courtly Etiquette. Only extant volume of the original work in the author's own handwriting and oldest extant letters (on reverse side) in kana
Kana
Kana are the syllabic Japanese scripts, as opposed to the logographic Chinese characters known in Japan as kanji and the Roman alphabet known as rōmaji...
. Volume title: Guidance on Court Service. The paper used was taken from old letters and official documents.
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, early 11th century, before 1012
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| Kyoto National Museum
Kyoto National Museum
The is one of the three formerly imperially-mandated art museums in Japan. The museum is located in Higashiyama Ward in Kyoto. The collections of the Kyoto National Museum focus on pre-modern Japanese and Asian art....
, Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
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| Oldest extant Saibara score
|Heian period
Heian period
The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...
, mid 11th century
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| , Saga
Saga, Saga
is the capital of Saga Prefecture, located on the island of Kyūshū, Japan.Saga was the capital of Saga Domain in the Edo period, and largest city of former Hizen Province....
, Saga
Saga Prefecture
is located in the northwest part of the island of Kyūshū, Japan. It touches both the Sea of Japan and the Ariake Sea. The western part of the prefecture is a region famous for producing ceramics and porcelain, particularly the towns of Karatsu, Imari, and Arita...
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| , Kanchi-in edition
| unknown
| Oldest extant complete edition; expanded and revised edition of the 11th century original
|mid-Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
|
| , Tenri
Tenri, Nara
is a city located in Nara, Japan. Tenri is the only city in Japan to be named after a religious group, the new religious movement Tenrikyo which has its headquarters in the city and believes it to be one among other energy centers of the world. Tenrikyo had recommended the name Yamabe, which is the...
, Nara
Nara Prefecture
is a prefecture in the Kansai region on Honshū Island, Japan. The capital is the city of Nara.-History:The present-day Nara Prefecture was created in 1887, making it independent of Osaka Prefecture....
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| unknown
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|early Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
|
| Ninna-ji
Ninna-ji
is the head temple of the Omuro school of the Shingon Sect of Buddhism. Located in western Kyoto, Japan, it was founded in AD 888 by the retired Emperor Uda. It is part of the "Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto", a UNESCO World Heritage Site.-History:...
, Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
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| Emperor Go-Uda
Emperor Go-Uda
Emperor Go-Uda was the 91st emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession...
| Biography of Kōbō-Daishi (Kūkai
Kukai
Kūkai , also known posthumously as , 774–835, was a Japanese monk, civil servant, scholar, poet, and artist, founder of the Shingon or "True Word" school of Buddhism. Shingon followers usually refer to him by the honorific titles of and ....
), original manuscript
|Kamakura period
Kamakura period
The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo....
, March 21, 1315
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| Daikaku-ji
Daikaku-ji
is a Shingon Buddhist temple in Ukyō-ku, a western ward in the city of Kyoto, Japan. The main images are of the Five Wisdom Kings, centered on Fudō. It was a villa of Emperor Saga, and later, retired Emperor Go-Uda conducted his cloistered rule from here. A school of ikebana, the Saga Goryū,...
, Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
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|edited by and
| Record of treasures at Tō-ji
To-ji
is a Buddhist temple of the Shingon sect in Kyoto, Japan. Its name means East Temple, and it once had a partner, Sai-ji . They stood alongside the Rashomon, the gate to the Heian capital. It is formally known as which indicates that it previously functioned as a temple providing protection for the...
|Nanboku-chō period to Muromachi period
Muromachi period
The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate, which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, two years after the brief Kemmu restoration of imperial...
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| Tō-ji
To-ji
is a Buddhist temple of the Shingon sect in Kyoto, Japan. Its name means East Temple, and it once had a partner, Sai-ji . They stood alongside the Rashomon, the gate to the Heian capital. It is formally known as which indicates that it previously functioned as a temple providing protection for the...
, Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
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See also
- Nara Research Institute for Cultural PropertiesNara Research Institute for Cultural PropertiesOne of two research institutes that comprise the National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, an independent administrative institution created in 2001. Established in 1972, the is located in the city of Nara, Japan with branches elsewhere in Nara prefecture...
- Tokyo Research Institute for Cultural PropertiesTokyo Research Institute for Cultural PropertiesOne of the two research institutes in Japan that are comprised by the National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, an independent administrative institution created in 2001...
- Independent Administrative Institution National MuseumIndependent Administrative Institution National MuseumIndependent Administrative Institution National Museum was the official name of the corporate entity created by the Japanese government in 2001 by merging three formerly independent national museums—the Tokyo National Museum, the Kyoto National Museum, and the Nara National Museum...