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Paper short abstract:

This work will analyze the origins of the production of sake and its introduction to the Japanese archipelago during Protohistory, as well as the productive methods of this alcoholic beverage. Afterwards, the possible ritual consumption of this drink will be studied.

Paper long abstract:

It is well known that alcoholic beverages were probably produced in mainland China before 1st Millennium. Nevertheless, it is difficult to affirm the existence of sake in Jōmon Japan, although alcohol was not unknown in the Yellow Sea Interaction Sphere. In fact, some ancient Chinese written sources show that fermented fruits/cereal wines were already being produced during China’s Bronze Age, and Chinese ceramic repertoires point at a much earlier production.

Alcoholic beverages have been used, along with other psychotropic substances, in numerous cultures to promote drunkenness or "contact with the other world", in order to reach an alleged state of enlightenment and union with divinities. The Japanese islands are no exception to this rule. In fact, sake has been, and still is today an active part in many religious

rituals, ranging from libations to commensality feasts.

This work will analyze the origins of the production of sake and its introduction to the Japanese archipelago during Protohistory, as well as the productive methods of this alcoholic beverage. Afterwards, the possible ritual consumption of this drink will be studied.

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Paper short abstract:

This paper examines the “profiles” of medieval Japanese gamblers and proposes that the risk-takers Fujiwara Akihira 藤原明衡 (?-1066) refers to in his eleventh-century Shinsarugakuki 新猿楽記 would have been familiar to medieval audiences as members of bakuto (gambling gangs).

Paper long abstract:

Gambling and wagering represented a chance to claim both tangible and intangible winnings in premodern Japan. Most members of Heian- (794-1185) and Kamakura-period (1185-1333), society, from emperors to warriors, wagered on games including go, sugoroku and shōgi.

Fujiwara no Akihira 藤原明衡 (?-1066), a mid-ranking scholar-official of the Heian period, describes a typical gambler in his eleventh-century Shinsarugakuki 新猿楽記 (“An Account of the New Monkey Music”). Aside from his impressive knowledge of go and sugoroku, Akihira writes that the gambler is also said to be dexterous, competitive, and exhibits the “capacity for theft and murder.” As emperors, aristocrats and monks regularly played, and gambled on, go and sugoroku, Akihira’s description at first glance seems to be at odds with the reality of who, in some unfortunate cases, “risked it all” on the roll of the dice in Heian and Kamakura Japan. This paper examines the several “profiles” of a medieval gambler and proposes that the risk-takers Akihira was referring to would have been well-known to audiences in the Heian and Kamakura periods as rascals and rapscallions who sometimes belonged to gambling gangs or bakuto 博徒.

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Paper short abstract:

The question how imported commodities were distributed in Medieval Japan was raised by historians in the 1970s. Combined with results in the field of Sino-Japanese relations, this paper aims to provide ideas about possible connections between foreign trade and domestic economy in Muromachi Japan.

Paper long abstract:

The import of Chinese commodities to Muromachi Japan was carried out by official members of Japanese diplomatic missions to Ming China and those others who were on the tributary ships – at least this is what we can say based on the existing sources. What happened to these commodities after their arrival in Japan, how were they distributed in Japanese economy, it is a more difficult question. Sasaki Gin’ya, an expert of Medieval Japanese economy was one of the first historians who raised this question in the 1970s, by mentioning a few possible directions for future research. In addition to this, there is a recent trend in Japanese historical scholarship to reconsider karamono (imported commodities) in Ancient and Medieval Japanese history, art and culture, which also makes it necessary to think about how foreign commodities were imported and consumed within Japan. The aim of this paper is to rethink the connection between foreign trade and domestic economy in Late Medieval Japan and to provide some examples from sources that help us approach to this question. The paper will first look at the financial side of the tributary missions, investigating about the methods of fundraising (for preparing equipment, tribute and trade products etc.) and about those who contributed to the preparation of a tributary ship. Those who invested the most capital, were the “kyakushu” (“guests”), merchants or members of religious institutions, but there were also small-scale investors who were interested in the legendary profit of China-trade. Next, the paper will explain about how Japanese purchased commodities in China and then – by providing examples of karamono that were used as gifts or were sold by their owners to someone else – examine about possible routes and patterns of distribution within the society. In this context the role of curators who were regarded as experts of imported commodities, will also be considered. Based on the analysis of travel diaries and domestic records, this paper will provide ideas about possible connections between foreign trade and domestic economy in Muromachi Japan.