What’s That Thing? Part 14
I really liked this question, so it actually skipped a few to be answered ^^ Anonymous asked: “Maiko Mameyo of Arai was recently photographed wearing a unique Miyako Odori kanzashi I think? Are these usual - can't say I've seen them before? The photo is on Geimei's Tumblr since I saw a question asked about it on there and wondered if you knew anything else about them ^^” First, let’s look at the image being referenced:
Image courtesy of E__m_____ on Instagram. Arai has an absolutely massive catalogue of unique kanzashi that they’ve been using for decades, and this just happens to be one of them. These kanzashi are meant to resemble the props that are used during the Miyako Odori. They’re called Dansen (団扇/だんせん), which is based on a round Chinese fan called Duansyen /Tuanshan (spelled as either 團扇 or 团扇). Over time they evolved into double sided paddles that are split down the middle and covered with cherry blossoms on one side and willow leaves on the other. This split may have been done to look like war fans that were used for signalling on the battlefield. Their complimentary colors definitely give a feeling that they are signaling the trees to bloom! They’re approximately the size of an uchiwa, but are slightly more round. This is what they look like up close:
Image courtesy of Chi_mama_jj on Instagram. Here’s an image of her onesan Mameroku wearing it when she was a young maiko too:
Image courtesy of Honori-e. I’m not sure how long Arai has had this kanzashi but, like many of their others, they’ve probably owned them since at least the early 1990s. They are all beautiful works of art that have clearly been treasured ^^
