This given the extensive history and use of silk fabrics in Kimono, is a Miniseries of the collective Silks used by Japanese silk producers. This being the origin of silk introduction to Japan.
Silk was first produced in Neolithic China (10,000-2000BC), and introduced to Japan by 300 AD. The trade had begun to be spread by China to Eurasia (such as India in 140AD)[4] between 100-199AD and thus knowledge of sericulture was spread to neighbouring regions.[1] This then began to began a formalized trade route known more famously as the Silk Road, begun in the Han dynasty (207 AD–220 AD).[2] China held a monopoly on much trade at this time, and like a squabbling toddler, often looked down on its vassal states. As such the 'dwarf kingdom'(Wa|倭|submissive, distant, dwarf) as China referred to Japan, did not spread the knowledge of sericulture in an effort which prevented sericulture proper being practiced for another 500 years when it was introduced by Koreans in dribs and drabs to Japan.
Silk Road Route, (CC3.0) Kelvin CaseSilk Production occurs by the following:-
- The female silkmoth lays 300 to 500 eggs.
- The silkmoth eggs hatch to form larvae or caterpillars, known as silkworms.
- The larvae feed on mulberry leaves.
- Having grown and moulted several times, the silkworm extrudes a silk fibre and forms a net to hold itself.
- It swings itself from side to side in a figure '8', distributing the saliva that will form silk.
- The silk solidifies when it contacts the air.
- The silkworm spins approximately one mile of filament and completely encloses itself in a cocoon in about two or three days. The amount of usable quality silk in each cocoon is small. As a result, about 2,500 silkworms are required to produce a pound of raw silk.[9]
- The intact cocoons are boiled, killing the silkworm pupa.
- The silk is obtained by brushing the undamaged cocoon to find the outside end of the filament.
- The silk filaments are then wound on a reel. One cocoon contains approximately 1,000 yards of silk filament. The silk at this stage is known as raw silk. One thread comprises up to 48 individual silk filaments.[4]
According to the speculative tome the Nihongi (720 AD) in 300AD several Koreans went to China, and brought back 4 Chinese women who taught the Japanese how to perform plain and figured silk weaving. However until 800-899AD, the entire nature of sericulture was not fully revealed until a series of Korean, and Japanese envoys and diplomatic exchange eventually began in Japan.[1] These Korean-Japanese envoys often came from Silla, Baekje and Goguryeo, the 3 Ancient Korean Kingdoms and Gaya, which make up modern South Korea today and began trading in silk related items during the Kofun period (300-568AD). At the time, if China, Korea and Japan were 3 brothers, China would be seen as the oldest, Korea the middle child, and Japan the youngest.[7][8]
In Wa as it was known then, the Korean envoys often changed their minds about what to share with Wa higgedly-piggedly, due to the higgedly-piggedly power dynamics of exchange with China (Hanja:事大|serving the great [China])[7][8]. It was most likely these envoys came from the small Kingdom of Gaya, were some Japanese-Koreans and Korean-Japanese who lived and travelled between the two Kingdoms of Gaya and Wa most frequently at the time.[5] They would travel and trade mostly between Gaya and the Ruler of Tsushima, due to the proximity of Tsushima to Japan and Korea.[7] So during the Kofun period, the Koreans had very little incentive to give Japan silk technologies, instead offering silk products in other gifts to Wa.
Circa 400-499AD, it is thought that Silk Twill (a course silk) was brought to Japan by Asian Continental Twill weavers from the Hata Clan (秦氏), likely Korean who had earlier pioneered new silk weaving technologies for tapestries who often sent diplomatic envoys to Japan unlike China.[3] One of the earliest introductions of silk into these cross-cultural artifacts would have been King Haji's (KRN:하지; JPN:荷知) Gayageum (가야금), a Zither or silk stringed instrument sat in the lap like a Koto, which may have reached Japan around 479AD.[5][6] Chinese fashions worn by the Tang dynasty were often taken up at this time and at this point an early incarnation of Hakama (trousers) were taken up.[19] By the end of the Kofun period however, this all changed with the unification of the Korea peninsula, this lead to Gaya being overtaken by Baekje in importance to Japan by the 550's and the dissolution of Gaya in 562AD.[10] With the Yamato aristocracy of Kyushu beginning to form, creating stability, this lead to increased need for diplomatic relations with Korea.[9] By the beginning of the 7th century, given this lack of trade in woven and plain silks, this would presumably have lead to a greater demand for local silk production which began in Nara around this time.
During the Asuka period (539-710AD), relations between Wa with the Korean peninsula and other countries were officially begun after another spat over titles with China. In 603 with the adoption of the Cap and Rank System from China after a series of Yamato polity conflicts (War = No schmancy silk needed) the relations began anew in 607 and people and silk began to travel again.[10] From 600-699AD, 100 Koreans arrived in Japan with 20 delegations from the Peninsula compared to 12 from China. During this period, the Japanese capital changed to Asuka, Nara where valuable plain silk was woven by this time and was often gifted to Korean Kings. In 688, the King of Silla was given woven silk in offer for a previous gift.[11] In 662, the Japanese enter the Baekje-Tang war straining Japan-Korean relations (KRN Hanja:交隣政策|Kyorin). The Asuka period was also unstable for Japan as well and by 645 the Taika Reforms took place, with succession disputes until the capital moved to Kashihara in 694 under the Fujiwara.[10] From this time on sporadic trade introduced more silk production items to Japan, but also jeopardized trade by Japanese involvement in Korean wars. A large number of fashions though still were influenced by China up to this point.
The Nara period (710-794) or the unification of the Japanese archipelago then began in Japan, with Nara both capital and trade hub for Japan. By 700-799AD with further infighting in Korea from the collapse of Goguryeo and takeover by Silla, the Balhae Kingdom (698-926) overtook the Baekje Kingdom a the most important trading partner, when around 40 delegations (KRN:발해사|Bokkaishi) were sent to trade with Japan from around 729-799.[13] 13 delegations were sent from Japan to the Balhae kingdom.[12] In 731, the Kingdom of Silla was invaded, perhaps as a result of Korean-Japanese emigrants who fled the warring states, bringing their trade and technology with them.[5][10] With this increase in trade and representation, came the self-assured nature of Japan. In 734, tributary items to the Chinese court included Pongee silk from Mino Prefecture.[11] In 752AD 300 Korean merchants exchanged Chinese silk brocade, tiger skins and fur pelts with the Yamato for Hemp cotton cloth and plain woven silk.[11][13] After another tumultous century of war in Japan, with the new Ritsuryo law code implemented, Fujiwara wars, 38 year Ainu or Emishi war and a new capital move the Nara period ended with the appointment of the first kind of Shogun in 794.[10] This began the new Golden Age, or the Heian Period.
Japan began to become less reliant on its neighbours becuase a unique Japanese culture and identity were beginning to form. By 800-899 though, some Chinese officials began to recognise Japan as a valuable state, through concerted efforts by Japanese and Korean diplomatic effort to recognise Japan as Reigi-no-kuni (霊亀の国|Equal state status). This paid off with some Chinese recognition of the Japanese. This paid in silk dividends when the provincial Chinese statesman Li Deyu gave a Japanese Envoy 10 pieces of silk to recognise the effort made in travelling in China and offerring pearls and woven silk, in turn for spreading Buddhism to Japan.[11] The 839 delegation returned in smaller numbers however, after a series of great storms had destroyed much of the voyages own ships resulting in the Japanese returning aboard Korean ships.[14] Jang Bogo, the Silla Wako (Silla pirate) and warlord also maintained a trading base in Kyushu, most likely trading in Chinese and Korean textiles.[5] In 858 the Fujiwara consolidated their hold over Japan.[10] By 894, the policy of sending ships to China was abolished over a spat caused by Sugawara no Michizane due to his own conflicting interests with the Fujiwara. Unlike the Heian women who could read and write in Chinese, Sugawara was completely ignorant of Chinese, and therefore useless as an ambassador and the Emperor had to order an end to the Chinese envoys.[15]
By this time the Heian court had begun to assemble and by 935 the Junihitoe began to be worn by Heian court women.[16][17] It is plausible they were made from silk with the sericin removed, which gives modern Kimono their shiny, smooth and incredibly soft texture, as course silks such as Tsumugi and Pongee are still seen as Traditional textiles today, but not luxurious enough for nobility. Whilst complex silk weaving was a Japanese textile technique and tie-dye was certainly used, decorative techniques were still being transported over from Korea and China. So instead of wearing decorative motif silks, Heian court ladies layered their Hitoe (single layer Kimono) into 12 and this process known as Kasane-no-irome (襲の色目|coloured layering) which adhered to the Chinese calendar of 72 seasons became fashionable as indoor wear for women, like teagowns in the Victorian age, or pajamas when you cant be arsed but want to pretend you aint a slob either.[18] By Murasaki Shikibu's time, these issues were overcome and new application techniques, embroidery and so on were used to decorate and strengthen fabrics, such as Sashiko stitches. Hakame were also first worn by women as an undivided base layer of their kimono, becoming a culotte divided type by the 10th century worn.[19]
TLDR
- 300-399: Koreans via Chinese women introduce plain woven silk weaving to Japan
- 400-499: The Hata Clan introduce Silk Twill Weave to Japan, and Gayan-Japanese Relations begin
- 500-599: Gayan Relations Steadily Decline, decreasing silk exchange between Japan and Korea, increasing local Japanese plain silk production
- 600-699: Formal Korean/Chinese-Japanese Relations begin and Silk is first traded officially by Koreans and Chinese merchants with Japanese silk makers in Nara
- 700-799: Korean Collapse facilitates new Silk production capabilities in Japan by Korean-Japanese immigration increased Japanese silk exports and Heian Nara producing first cultural golden age for Japan
- 800-899: Chinese recognition of Japan, Fujiwara Consolidation also driving demand for Complex silk weavers
- 900-999: Kasane aesthetic culture is born, and Junihitoe arrive creating the first silky ancestor of the Kimono
Bibliography
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_silk
[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silk_Road
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_influence_on_Japanese_culture#Silk_weaving
[4] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sericulture
[5] https://www.worldhistory.org/article/982/ancient-korean--japanese-relations/
[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daegaya
[7] The Exchange of Envoys between Korea and Japan During the Tokugawa Period, George McCune, 1946, pp.1-2, The Far Eastern Quarterly
[8] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sadae
[9] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yamato_period#The_Yamato_state
[10] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_Japanese_history
[11] Japan's Foreign Relations 600 to 1200 A.D.: A Translation from Zenrin Kokuhouki, Charlotte Verschuer, 1999, pp.3-32
[12] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balhae
[13] https://ko.wikipedia.org/wiki/%EB%B0%9C%ED%95%B4%EC%82%AC
[14] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fujiwara_no_Tsunetsugu
[15] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sugawara_no_Michizane
[16] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J%C5%ABnihitoe
[17] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kager%C5%8D_Nikki
[18] https://japan-forward.com/kimono-style-junihitoe-empress-masakos-sumptuous-enthronement-dress/
[19] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hakama
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