Dōchū

O I R A N : 花魁 (by mboogiedown)

“A rare sight, even in Kyoto! An Oiran ducks beneath the curtain of an exclusive ryotei (traditional Japanese dining establishment) during an evening procession beneath the cherry blossoms….

Oiran were the high class courtesans of Edo Period Japan’s famous pleasure quarters. The highest ranking among them, according to their beauty, character, educational attainments and artistic skills, were known as Tayuu, and were patronized by only the wealthiest and most influential clients, including the Daimyo, or feudal lords.

From WIkipedia:

To entertain their clients, oiran practiced the arts of dance, music, poetry and calligraphy, and an educated wit was considered essential to sophisticated conversation.

The isolation within the closed districts resulted in the oiran becoming highly ritualised in many ways and increasingly removed from the changing society. Strict etiquette ruled the standards of appropriate behavior. Their speech preserved the formal court standards rather than the common language. A casual visitor would not be accepted; their clients would summon them with a formal invitation, and the oiran would pass through the streets in a formal procession with a retinue of servants. The costumes worn became more and more ornate and complex, culminating in a style with eight or more pins and combs in the hair, and many prescribed layers of highly ornamented garments derived from those of the earliest oiran from the early Edo period. Similarly, the entertainments offered also were derived from those of the original oiran generations before. Ultimately, their culture grew increasingly rarefied and remote from everyday life, and their clients dwindled.

Today only a few (I think there are 4) women who continue to keep the art of the Oiran alive (minus the sexual aspect).”

IMG_0638 (by Shimabara.Tayuu)

The First Flower

arigatojapan:

Oiran was the highest ranked courtesan in the pleasure quarters Edo era. The word oiran consists of two kanji. Flower & Leader, Top Or First.

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↵ Reblogged from arigatojapan

# oiran

# tayuu

Oiran Dochu - おいらん道中 (by ajpscs)

A Tayu parade in Kyoto, Japan.

↵ Reblogged from j-dorn

IMG_0640 (by Shimabara.Tayuu)

↵ Reblogged from miyako-odori

# tayuu

# oiran

# vintage

A tayuu (high class prostitute) from Shimabara in Kyoto. The area was the licensed prostitution district of Kyoto. Tayuu wore gorgeous costumes that grew ever more ostentatious during the Edo period (1603-1868).

The Tayuu hairstyle distinguishes them from Maiko and Geisha. It was called Hyogo and took hours to get done.

The hair in the front had large Bekkou and eight Kougai ornaments. The Ushiro-gami had six pieces of Mae-bira ornaments, Tome ornaments and Hana-kanzashi ornaments. The total could weigh as much as 3 kg (6.6 lbs).

Tayuu footwear was as outrageous as their hair. They wore high black-lacquered geta. While geta usually had only two teeth, Tayuu used geta with three teeth when they made their rounds on the streets. Walking incredibly slowly, and moving each foot in a round-about way, they were escorted by a bevy of people and attracted enormous attention (see print of a parade in Yoshiwara).

Practicing Tayuu have long since disappeared, but Shimabara counts four women who actively keep the Tayuu culture alive. One of them is Tsukasa Tayuu who tries very hard to revive the Shimabara culture.

Prostitution was widespread in Japan during the Edo period (1603-1868). In an attempt to control this, the Tokugawa shogunate designated special licensed prostitution districts (Keisei-machi). Some famous ones were Yoshiwara in Edo (est. 1617)¹, Shinmachi in Osaka (est. 1624–1644)² and Shimabara in Kyoto (est. 1640)³.

Shimabara lasted until 1958 (Showa 33) when a new law outlawed prostitution. Very little remains. The Oumon gate can still be seen and the former Shimabara teahouse Wachigaiya, established in the Genroku period (1688-1704), has remained open to serve as a museum of Tayuu culture. It has been designated a Cultural Asset. Another teahouse that survived is the Sumiya.

¹ De Becker, J. E. (1899). The Nightless City or the History of the Yoshiwara Yukwaku. Max Nössler & Co.

² Avery, Anne Louise (2006). Flowers of the Floating World: Geisha and Courtesans in Japanese Prints and Photographs, 1772–1926 (Sanders of Oxford Exhibition Catalogue)

³ Official city sign at gate of Shimabara, Kyoto

Credits: http://www.oldphotosjapan.com