Kosode

Kosode
The was a type of short-sleeved Japanese garment, and the direct predecessor of the kimono. Though its component parts directly parallel those of the kimono, its proportions differed, typically having a wider body, a longer collar and narrower sleeves. The sleeves of the were typically sewn to the body entirely, and often featured heavily rounded outer edges.
The was worn in Japan as common, everyday dress from roughly the Kamakura period (1185–1333) until the latter years of the Edo period (1603–1867), at which a point its proportions had diverged to resemble those of modern-day kimono; it was also at this time that the term kimono, meaning "thing to wear on the shoulders", first came into use when referring to the garment formerly known as the .
History
Originating in the Heian period as an undergarment for both men and women, the was a plain white garment, typically made of silk, worn directly next to the skin. Both men and women wore layered, wrap-fronted, wide-sleeved robes on top of the , with the style of layering worn by women of the Imperial Japanese courtknown as the , literally "twelve layers"featuring a greater number of robes than were seen on men. The would also be worn as sleeping wear alongside a pair of .
Following dress edicts designed to decrease the number of layered garments worn at court, the gradually became outerwear from roughly the Kamakura period onwards. Styles of wearing the such as layering two and wearing the uppermost robe stripped off from the shouldersbecame popular, alongside a number of newly-developed textile decoration techniques, such as dyeing and embroidery, used to decorate the garment.
Initially undyed, the dyed came in the Muromachi period, peaked in popularity in the Momoyama period, and faded out in the Keicho period and Edo period. Methods used for decoration included ("Chinese textile") silk fabrics, which mimicked embroidery through the use of floating silk yarns and gilt-paper strips, and the elaborate technique of combination dyework and embroidery, until both were restrained by sumptuary laws and the development of .
The 's proportionsa wide body and comparatively narrow sleevesgradually evened out over time, before coming to resemble those of a modern kimono around the Edo period. The sleeves on some women's also got longer and began to detach from the body below the shoulder, a style allowing the to become wider over time.
Components
The component parts of a are roughly similar to those of a kimono, with the only major differences being the proportions of each aspect in comparison to those of a modern kimono. The width of the loom, and hence the (fabric bolt) used for was significantly larger than that for , and the sleeves and collar were also cut and hemmed to different widths.
In the Keichō period (1596–1615, just before the Edo period), the width of the fabric bolt used for a was about , and the sleeves were made of one-half width. The (cuff opening) was narrow, the (width of the neck opening) was narrow, the (collar length) was long, and the was short.
the sleeves of a were comparatively short in both length and width, being for the most part attached to the body down the entire length, with a somewhat rounded edge below the wrist opening of each sleeve.
the body panels for the were much wider in proportion, creating a distinctive dropped-shoulder appearance.
the collar of the was much wider than is seen on modern kimono, and was also relatively longer, forming a longer, shallower angle along the .
the overlapping front panels. The , due to the length and low placement of the collar, had a far more triangular appearance than the irregular quadrilateral on modern kimono; this gave the a sloping, low-waisted appearance.
Gallery
See also
List of items traditionally worn in Japan
References
Bibliography
Gluckman, Dale Carolyn, and Sharon Sadako Takeda, eds. When Art Became Fashion: Kosode in Edo-Period Japan. New York: Weatherhill, 1992.
Kennedy, Alan. Japanese Costume: History and Tradition. New York: Rizzoli, 1990.
Kosode: 16th–19th Century Textiles from the Nomura Collection. New York: Kodansha International, 1985.
External links
Momoyama, Japanese Art in the Age of Grandeur, an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on
Tokyo National Museum – an example of period clothing, including .
The Tale of Genji Costume Museum – includes period clothing, including
Made Simple
Kyoto National Museum
Japanese full-body garments
Folk costumes
Japanese words and phrases