Doll Item Number: N2.901 a-b from the MOA: University of British Columbia

Description

Seated male figure (part a) dressed in imperial costume, representing the Japanese emperor, with a lacquered headdress above his hair. His robe is predominantly purple (now faded), with red, gold and white. Platform (part b) is wood, in the shape of a book, covered in green cloth with dark orange and white binding.

History Of Use

Hina ningyō (雛人形; hina doll) known as obina (男雛), representing the emperor. It is paired with mebina (女雛), MOA collection N2.900 a-b, representing the empress. The pair is known as dairi bina (内裏雛). A set of hina ningyō (雛人形; hina dolls) are displayed for hinamatsuri (雛祭り; Doll Festival or Girls’ Day), celebrated on March 3 in Japan. Hinamatsuri is intended to pray for the health and happiness of young girls.

Cultural Context

used at festivals