Benkan

, also called in Japan, in Korea, and in Vietnam, is a type of crown that was traditionally worn by the Emperors of China, Japan, Korea, and kings in the cultural sphere of East Asia.

The is a type of crown that originated in China; it was worn by the Emperor, by his ministers, and by aristocrats. Among all the type of Chinese headwear, the mianguan was the most expensive type; it was reserved especially for important sacrificial events. Regulations on the shape and its making was set during the Eastern Han dynasty and used in the succeeding dynasties only to be ended at the fall of the Ming dynasty in the 16th century AD.

In Japan, the has been worn by Emperors as a crown since the Nara period when the Chinese-style was introduced from the Tang dynasty. Emperor Shōmu was reported to be the first emperor in Japan to be fully dressed into (a form of Chinese ceremonial clothing), which included the Chinese-style in 732 AD during the New Year court assembly.

It is also used in Vietnam, and the monarchs of the Joseon Dynasty also wore the equivalent .

(China)

In ancient China, the was worn by the Emperor and by his ministers, and by aristocrats. Among all the type of Chinese headwear, the was the most expensive type; it was reserved especially for important sacrificial events.

The along with the was used since the Zhou dynasty. The system was abolished in the Qin dynasty by the First Emperor of Qin and adopted the system instead, the was however recorded. The was not used in Western Han. In the Qin and Western Han, the emperor would wear another type of crown known as the .

In the Eastern Han, Emperor Ming created new clothing regulations for sacrificial rituals and official occasions, prescribing which types of clothing and accessories were allowed to be worn by people of different social rank; this included the . According to the new regulations, the was supposed to be worn along with the official clothing only by the emperor, princes, dukes, and ministers on important ritual occasions. The revived crown based on the literature, after which it was then used in rituals and important ceremonies in various dynasties. However, there are mutual contradictions in the descriptions of the documents and their ancient notes, and each dynasty often revised them.

Regulations on the shape and its making was set during the Eastern Han dynasty and used in the succeeding dynasties only to be ended at the fall of the Ming dynasty in the 16th century AD. The basic shape of the Chinese remained the same from ancient times to the Ming Dynasty. The crown worn by the Ming Dynasty's Wanli Emperor has been excavated from the Dingling Mausoleum, while the one showed in the painting, "Illustrated Scrolls of the Emperors of the dynasties", by depicts the emperors from the Former Han Dynasty to the Sui Dynasty, where the is almost the same shape as the crown depicted, with minor differences in decorum.

File:Liu Bei Tang-detail.jpg, Liu Bei of Shu wearing the .
File:Chinese Imperial Mian, Dingling.jpg, excavated from the mausoleum of Wanli Emperor in Ming dynasty.
File:Wanli-Emperor.jpg, The of Wanli Emperor. He is wearing the same as the in the left picture.
File:Mianguan.jpg, with 9 strings, Ming dynasty.

Many of the non-Han Chinese dynasties that ruled China also adopted the . (Liao, which did not adopt the ritual system of the Han dynasty, and Yuan, which is considered to have a strong Mongolian flavor, also adopted the .)

The stopped being used in China since the fall of the Ming dynasty and the establishment of the Qing dynasty by the Manchu. Instead, a unique Manchu crown called the 'morning crown' ( in Manchu) was used. The Manchu crown was shaped like an umbrella, and the top of the crown was decorated with a special pearl-encrusted ornament called the morning pearl.

(Japan)

Emperor's crown

The is a type of ceremonial crown in Japan, also known as the Emperor's ceremonial crown, and was once used together with (imperial robes) in ceremonies such as accession to the throne and morning prayers. In the , it is said that "the crown at the time of the Daijosai is that of Emperor Ōjin", and that the crown of Emperor Ōjin was used at the Daijosai until the Heian and Kamakura periods. However, the crown has not survived to the present day.

Among the Shōsōin treasures, there is a worn by Emperor Shōmu that has been damaged and is called . The crown does not retain its original form, but there are metal openwork pieces with phoenix, clouds and arabesque patterns, as well as pearls, coral and glass beads threaded through the crown.

The worn by Japanese emperors is often referred to as a "Tang-style crown", but it is actually quite different from the worn in China. The worn by the emperor in the Edo period consisted of a metal frame placed on top of an openwork gilt-bronze base called the "heavenly crown", with forty-eight jewels hanging from the edge of the frame, twelve on each side.

The painting Silken Painting of Emperor Go-Daigo prominently displays the Benkan of Emperor Go-Daigo which is said to be the crown of Emperor Jimmu and his successors during the coronation ceremony is preserved in the Imperial Collection of the Kyoto Imperial Palace.

The was used until the coronation of Emperor Kōmei, but since Emperor Meiji, the has been replaced by a as the government reformed the coronation to be more Shinto-based rather than Chinese inspired.

File:Emperor Godaigo.jpg, Emperor Go-Daigo wearing a ( Buddhābhiṣeka, " Silken Painting of Emperor Go-Daigo"). A board with gold leaf is placed on top of the hanging tail crown, and a sun decoration is placed on top of it. A bridle hangs from the crown board.
File:Benkan.jpg, View of a . The actual crown of almost the same shape has been handed down to the imperial family.
File:Benkan emperor komei.jpg, The of Emperor Komei.

Empress' crown ()

The crown of an Empress is called a . Whether it can be considered as a type of or a different type of crown is a matter of opinion.

The does not have a crown board or similar metal frame on top of the crown, and there is no hair hanging from the crown board. The other difference between the and the is the phoenix attached to the front of the . There are ornaments hanging from both ears and the beak of the phoenix, which are decorated with flowers. However, the top of the head is decorated with the same sun emblem as the and the same design of Yatagarasu and Zuiun. The is accompanied by a hairpin, a foreign object and a small bow.

The Order of the Precious Crown, established in 1888 (the 21st year of the Meiji) to be awarded to women, is a reference to this, and the center of the insignia is decorated with the image of a precious .

(Vietnam)

The Chinese-style was also used in Vietnam, where it was known as the .

File:Khai Dinh2.jpg, Khải Định of Nguyễn dynasty wearing a garment and
File:越南阮朝弘宗宣皇帝阮福晙（启定1916年—1925年）31岁登基时的冕服照片（1916年）.jpg, Khải Định of Nguyễn dynasty wearing a

Construction and design

The is composed of:

A long, rectangular wooden board called the board ( in the Han dynasty) was placed on top of the , with fulls hanging from the front and back of the board.

In the Han dynasty, the was round in the front but flat in the back; it was about in width and in length. On both sides of the mianguan, there was a hole where an emerald hairpin could pass through so that the crown could be fastened to the hair bun of its wearer. A red band called the was attached to the centre of the and wraps around it. The silk cord was tied on one end of the hairpin and would then be tied on the other side of the hairpin passing under the chin. There was also a () located on both side of the around the ear area; the was a pearl or a piece of jade which symbolized that the wearer of should not believe in any slander.

The number of tassels depended on the status of the wearer, and the of the Emperor had 12 tassels at the front and back, for a total of 24 tassels. The 12 tassels dangles down the shoulders and were made of jade beads of multiple colours which would sway with the wearer's movement.

In addition, there was the nine-tasselled crown, worn by dukes and the Crown Prince's servants. The eight-tasselled crown was worn by princes and dukes. The (, seven-tasselled crown) was worn by ministers. The five-tasselled crown (, ) was worn by viscounts and barons.

The quantity and quality of the jewellery were an important marker of social ranking. In the Han dynasty, the emperor would use 12 strings of white jade, 7 strings of blue jade were used by dukes and princes, and black jade were used for ministers.

Cultural significance

The was designed to strengthen the charismatic authority of its wearer which was conferred by the head. This is similar to the Mandate of Heaven concept in which there is a rationalization of divine authority.

Related items

Since China was a crown-wearing culture, there were many crowns for different ranks, positions, and times.

* – a crown worn by an empress (e.g. – crowns of Empress Xiao Danxian and Empress Dowager Xiao Jing excavated from the Dingling site, two each)

See also

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* Crown
* List of Hanfu headwear
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References

Notes
Sources

Bibliography

* 松平乘昌『図説宮中柳営の秘宝』 河出書房新社、2006年。。
* 『服周之冕』 中華書局、2009年。
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External links

{{Japanese clothing

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