Jinmaku

Jinmaku literally means "camp curtain". In the Japanese the word is formed from two kanji. The first, {{linktext|陣}}, means "military camp" and the second, {{linktext|幕}} means "curtain".

In ancient Japan jinmaku were tied to poles and stretched around field encampments to form a defensive barrier. References to its use as early in the Nara period (710–794) are found in the Konjaku Monogatarishū, a Japanese collection of over one thousand tales written during the late Heian period (794–1185). Soldiers in the Konjaku Monogatarishū slept in an area surrounded by jinmaku to provide protection while sleeping.{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Nihon Daihyakka Zensho (Nipponika) (日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ) “Large Encyclopedia of Japan (Nipponika)”) |title=Jinmaku |url=http://rekishi.jkn21.com/ |access-date=2012-01-12 |year=2012 |publisher=Shogakukan |location=Tokyo |language=ja |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070825113418/http://rekishi.jkn21.com/ |archive-date=2007-08-25 }} Jinmaku were typically constructed of hemp cloth.{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Nihon Jinmei Daijiten (日本人名大辞典, Large Encyclopedia Japanese Names) |title=Jinmaku |url=http://rekishi.jkn21.com/ |access-date=2011-11-08 |year=2011 |publisher=Shogakukan |location=Tokyo |language=ja |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070825113418/http://rekishi.jkn21.com/ |archive-date=2007-08-25 }} Illustrations on the Mongol invasion in the Zenkunen kassen emaki depict the appearance of clan mon emblems on jinmaku in the 13th century. The style and construction of jinmaku were standardized in the Muromachi period (1336–1573).

The Honchō Gunki Kō (Thoughts on Japanese Military Equipment), a military manual written in 1709{{Cite journal|last=Testa|first=Giuseppina Aurora|date=2020-07-03|title="Mōko Shūrai Ekotoba" (Illustrated Account of the Mongol Invasions)|url=https://revistas.ucm.es/index.php/EIKO/article/view/73275|journal=Eikón / Imago|language=en|volume=9|pages=35–57|doi=10.5209/eiko.73275|issn=2254-8718|doi-access=free}} by Arai Hakuseki (1657–1725), lays out standard measurements for jinmaku. Arai, an advisor to the shōgun Tokugawa Ienobu, recorded that a jinmaku should be {{Convert|1.5|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} tall and {{Convert|8.4|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} wide. The number of {{nihongo|makukuji|幕串}}, or poles for hanging the jinmaku, was set at 10 for a taisho officer and 8 for other soldiers, tethers only in white, black, or blue, and mon clan emblems placed in between three, five, or seven places.{{cite encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Nihon Daihyakka Zensho (Nipponika) (日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ) Large Encyclopedia of Japan (Nipponika)) |title=Jinmaku |url=http://rekishi.jkn21.com/ |access-date=2012-01-12 |year=2012 |publisher=Shogakukan |location=Tokyo |language=ja |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070825113418/http://rekishi.jkn21.com/ |archive-date=2007-08-25}} In the Edo period military science became popular among samurai and gave religious meaning to jinmaku as a sacred item.

Jinmaku are used in festivals and theaters, especially for open-air performances. Traditionally the jinmaku is thought to have the power to drive evil away from the stage.

{{reflist}}

{{commonscat|Jinmaku (military curtain)}}

Jinmaku can be constructed for recreational or historical reenactment using modern materials. The following sites include basic directions.

• [http://www.thefightschool.demon.co.uk/The_SHOGUN_Tent_Guide.htm The Shogun Tent Guide] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090328124019/http://www.thefightschool.demon.co.uk/The_SHOGUN_Tent_Guide.htm |date=2009-03-28 }}
• [http://www.currentmiddleages.org/tents/japanesetents.htm#jinmaku Jinmaku at Currentmiddleages]
• [https://sengokudaimyo.com/camp-curtains Nihon Zatsuroku: An Online Japanese Miscellany]

{{Japanese architectural elements}}

Category:Architecture in Japan

Category:Partitions in traditional Japanese architecture

Category:Portable furniture