kagami mirror

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. Edo shokunin　江戸の職人 Craftsmen of Edo .
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kagami 鏡 mirror, Spiegel

. WKD : kigo related to the mirror .
kyoodai 鏡台 mirror stand
kyoodai iwai 鏡台祝 celebrating the mirror stand
hatsu kagami 初鏡 "first (use of the) mirror"
In Samurai Families, on the 20 of January, the mirrors were opened for the first time, some kagami mochi offered and then ritually eaten by the womanfolk.
sanmenkyoo 三面鏡 three-mirrored dresser

- also introduced are
wakyou, wakyoo　和鏡 Wakyo
Japanese style mirrors / History of mirrors in Japan
Mirror with auspicious symbols of winter

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ekagami, e-kagami 柄鏡　mirror with a handle


ekagami, e-kagami 柄鏡　mirror with a handle

. . . A mirror with one's family crest may signify the self assertion of the family or individual who used such a mirror. A mirror with a scenic motif, such as Mount Fuji and the pine grove of Miho or the eight views of Omi, may express one's desire to see these famous sights or to travel.



By the Edo period handles, often bound in rattan, were added to Japanese brass or bronze mirrors. The mirror discs also became larger to accommodate the increased size of ladies' hair arrangements. These types of mirror were known as e-kagami.
Perhaps it can be said that the motifs on handled mirrors truly reflected the heart of the Edoite!
- source : www.kyohaku.go.jp

- History of mirrors in Japan -
- reference -


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Mirrors were first introduced for religious rituals, but had been used by the aristocracy for combing and make-up since the Heian period.
In the Edo period, they became widely used by all people.

kagamishi 鏡師 mirror maker


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kagami migaki 鏡磨き /　kagami togi 鏡研ぎmirror polisher in Edo

Since the mirrors of the Edo period lost their shine very soon, it was necessary to polish them regularly.


source :cleanup.jp/life/edo/17

The bronze mirrors of the ladies of Edo had to be polished at least once a year. A good business time for the wayside craftsmen was in winter, toward the New Year.
They sat by the roadside, putting the mirror in front of them whilst polishing it. So they could see their own face all the time.

They were often the subject of senryu.

わが面で試みをする鏡とぎ
waga men de kokoromi o suru kagamitogi

using my own face
as a trial object
to polish this mirror


磨ぎたての鏡びっくり下女気絶
togitate no kagami bikkuri gejo kizetsu

looking into
the newly polished mirror
the servant faints

Maybe now she realized the great difference in her own "beauty" and that of here lovely lady.

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togishi 研ぎ師 研師 polisher of mirrors, swords and blades
kenma 研磨 sword polishing

- quote -
Kenma - Japanese Sword Polishing
The basic 2 stages of Kenma ( Polishing ) are the Shitaji-Kenma ( Foundation polish ) and Shiage-Kenma ( Final polish ). The 3rd stage is the final, touch-up polish. Normally, the 9 Japanese polishing stones are used to complete the Kenma. .....
- - - - - Kenma procedures
1. Mine Kenma
2. Shinogi-ji Kenma
3. Hira-ji Kenma ( Flat area polish )
4. Yokote-suji-kiri ( Side line formation )
- - - - - Minor Polish
The minor polish can be done to the sword with scuff markings or the sword with Hike ( Scratch ).
- source : sfswordsociety -

- reference -


. Saeki Yataroo 佐柄木弥太郎 Saeki Yataro .
The official togimonoshi 砥物師 of Tokugawa Ieyasu.
He lived in a district named after him,
Kanda Saekichoo 神田佐柄木町　Kanda Saeki-cho, Kanda Saekicho

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- quote
Japan in the Edo Period - An Ecologically-Conscious Society
There were many other kinds of specialized craftsmen to repair broken items, including paper lanterns and locks, replenish vermilion inkpads, and refurbish old Japanese wooden footwear, mills and mirrors, to name a few. They supported a society where nothing was thrown away but everything was carefully repaired, and used until it could truly be used no more.
- source : Eisuke Ishikawa / JFS



. kagami ema 鏡絵馬 votive tablet as a mirror .
You can paint the part of your face that should improve its beauty.

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合わせ鏡のおひさ / Takashimaya no O-Hisa 高島屋おひさ


source : kanazawabunko.com



The rebus picture (hanji-e 判じ絵) :
田圃（た）TA、鹿島（かしま）KASHIMA 踊り手の尾（お）O に火（ひ）HI がつき、徳利と盃で酒（さ）SA で、
「たかしまおひさ」- Takashima Ohisa

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kagami o miru geisha 鏡を見る芸者


source : allposters.co.jp

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猫が鏡を覗いている cat peeking in the mirror


source : bumblebees.at.webry.info

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CLICK for many more photos !

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. shinkyoo 神鏡 Shinkyo - "mirror of the kami", divine mirror .

The Imperial Regalia of Japan (三種の神器, Sanshu no Jingi / Mikusa no Kandakara), also known as the Three Sacred Treasures of Japan, consist of

the sword Kusanagi (草薙劍, Kusanagi no Tsurugi)),
the mirror Yata no Kagami (八咫鏡), and
the jewel Yasakani no Magatama (八尺瓊曲玉).

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- quote -
Mirrors in history and mirror superstitions
... There is a Buddhist belief that negative spirits will enter houses through the door if they have triangular-shaped roofs. Hanging a small circular mirror in front of the door will prevent the bad spirits from entering.
In Japan, bronze mirrors (imported from China c.300AD) were associated with Amaterasu, sun goddess and imperial ancestor — who, at the dawn of time, ordered her grandson to descend from heaven to rule over Japan and gave him a sacred mirror providing him and his successors perpetual access to the divine sun.
Throughtout medieval Japan, mirrors were considered sacred objects—used not only in rarefied imperial ritual and display but also to ward off evil spirts and, when placed in Shinto shrines, to speak with the gods.
- source : japanesemythology.wordpress.com -


makyoo 魔鏡 Makyo, magic mirror
- quote -
..... In Japan, bronze mirrors are known as magic mirrors, or makkyo (魔鏡). One side is brightly polished, while an embossed design decorates the reverse side. Remarkably, when light is directed onto the face of the mirror, and reflected to a flat surface, an image magically appears (usually the one featured on its back). While the metal is completely solid, the reflected image gives the impression that it must be in some way translucent. For many centuries, the ‘magic’ of these mirrors baffled both laymen and scientists.
The currently accepted explanation for this phenomenon is that during its construction the mirror’s surface is scraped, scratched, and polished, then coated with an amalgram of mercury, thereby causing stresses and “preferential buckling” into convexities of a scale too small to be observed by the naked eye, but matching the pattern on the back of the mirror.



Kyoto Journal sat down with the man rumored to be the last remaining makkyo maker in the world — Yamamoto Akihisa — and his friend, Yoshida Hisashi. Mr. Akihisa is descended from a family of mirror makers based in Kyoto.
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My grandfather received a commission — from Kyoto University, if I recall correctly — to make a makkyo mirror. People wanted to know if it was possible to make makkyo in present times. My grandfather had been actively involved in crafting mirrors for Shinto shrines since even before the Meiji Restoration (1868), and he had a sample makkyo, so he was already familiar with the method, although he hadn’t attempted to reproduce one himself until then.
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- Read the rest of the interview here :
- source : kyotojournal.org/renewa -

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jigokudayuu jisu wa edi 「地獄太夫実ハ壊泥」the famous Geisha turned hell monster
IRON MAIDEN アイアン・メイデン


source : mag.japaaan.com/archives


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磨なをす鏡も清し 雪の花
togi-naosu kagami mo kiyoshi yuki no hana

Polished anew
the holy mirror too is clear–
blossoms of snow
Tr. Shirane

Matsuo Basho　松尾芭蕉

. WKD : kagami 鏡 mirror .


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. Edo bakufu 江戸幕府 The Edo Government .

. Famous Places and Powerspots of Edo　江戸の名所 .

. Doing Business in Edo - 商売　- Introduction .

. shokunin 職人 craftsman, craftsmen, artisan, Handwerker .

. senryu, senryū 川柳　Senryu poems in Edo .

. Japanese Architecture - Interior Design - The Japanese Home .

. Legends and Tales from Japan　伝説 - Introduction .


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磨なをす鏡も清し 雪の花
togi-naosu kagami mo kiyoshi yuki no hana

Polished anew
the holy mirror too is clear–
blossoms of snow
Tr. Shirane

Matsuo Basho　松尾芭蕉

. WKD : kagami 鏡 mirror .


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:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

. Doing Business in Edo - 商売　- Introduction .

. shokunin 職人 craftsman, craftsmen, artisan, Handwerker .

. senryu, senryū 川柳　Senryu poems in Edo .

. Japanese Architecture - Interior Design - The Japanese Home .

. Legends and Tales from Japan　伝説 - Introduction .


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[ . BACK to WORLDKIGO . TOP . ]- - - - - #kagami #mirrormaking #kagamishi #mirror #togishi - - - -
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