Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties - Publications
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The Transmission of Indian Hand Block Printing and Hand Painting Textile –With Focus on Its Techniques, Communities Concerned, and the Purpose of Use–
Get PDFIndia has a rich tradition of textile culture in which we can trace the origin of various textile techniques. Among them, Indian hand block printing and hand painting textiles that are called “sarasa” in Japan has been fascinating people beyond time and place. Numerous studies have been conducted to discover its roots and investigate complicated techniques through various aspects, such as etymology, historical research, verification of trade records, and dye analysis. However, it has not been studied from the intangible cultural aspects, focusing on each and different technique among the vague category of “sarasa”, people and the communities concerned, its characteristics by region in India, and its use in the context of local Indian life.
Hence the present paper aims not only to contribute to the transmission or the safeguarding of the techniques of “sarasa” but also to clarify its vague definition, by focusing on three points: 1. techniques, 2. people and communities concerned, and 3. its use. The paper also organizes the information of how the techniques have been transmitted till now from both domestic and oversea references together with past records and the outcome of preliminary field research.departmental bulletin pape
［Materials for Art Research: Reprint of Dô no Onkura Okakemono Outasho Kiwame Daitsuke no Chô］
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Analysis of the Photographic Film of the Wall Paintings in Kondo, Horyu-ji
Get PDFThe photographs of the wall paintings in Kondo, Horyu-ji were taken in 1935as a work of the national conservation project for the wall paintings. It is regarded valuable document as the only material which shows the paintings before they were damaged by fire in 1949, and the negative plates of the photographs were designated national important cultural property in 2015. The document includes 431glass dry plates and 15negatives of infrared photographs. Even though film bases of negatives in those days are thought to have been nitrate or acetate, the bases of the negatives of the infrared photographs are considered to be cellulose nitrate. Therefore, they were analyzed because it was necessary to identify materials for considering their preservation method.
The nitrate film base had been put to practical use since 1889and was used until the 1950s. However, it has a risk of self-heating and must be conserved under appropriate conditions. The acetate film base which began to be used in 1948tends to cause decomposition by hydrolysis, the so-called ‘‘vinegar syndrome.’’ Thus these two kinds of film should be conserved in environment under low temperature and low humidity.
Fifteen negatives of infrared photographs were analyzed, and it was found that their spectra of emulsion part showed similar spectrum to that of gelatin. Furthermore spectra of two of the fifteen bases also showed pattern similar to that of nitrate film base. If it can be confirmed that the other films were also produced in the same method, it may be possible to think that they used a similar support.journal articl
Measurement of Water Washed Paper Documents Damaged by Tsunami: Chloride Content and Bacteria Count
Get PDFThe number of paper documents damaged by tsunami that accompanied the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011 is enormous. Because documents were damaged by not only seawater but also sewage including dirt and sand, conservators cannot treat the documents with conventional methods. Stabilization treatment, which places importance on sterilization and desalination of the documents, has been performed in Iwate Prefectural Museum for six years. However, some problems have occurred, such as odor from the treated paper documents.
It is inferred that the problem of odor from the documents is caused by microbes. Therefore, water temperature and dissolved oxygen content of water in tubs which were used to treat tsunami-damaged documents were measured in order to verify whether bacteria exist in the water or not. In addition, bacteria count and chloride content in the water used in washing the paper documents were measured.
In conclusion, the present study has demonstrated that:1)when the tsunami-damaged documents are sunk in hot water (approximately from 40℃ to 45℃), optimum temperature for growth of bacteria (from 30℃ to 37℃) is kept for about eight hours, and 2) when the tsunami-damaged documents are sunk in water, it leads to growth of bacteria in the water. Meanwhile, chloride ions included in tsunami-damaged documents can be removed by sinking the documents in water for a short time. Thus, if removing chloride ion from the documents is only needed, the documents do not need to be sunk in water for a long time. However, further surveys of the treatment method are required in order to verify the optimum treatment time to remove other deteriorating factors from the paper documents damaged by tsunami.journal articl
A Study on the Relationship between the Folk Culture of Shodoshima Island and Ise-daikagura
Get PDFIse-daikagura is professional ritual performers who perform shishimai － a lion dance and acrobatics for purifying the deities of houses and villages in Kansai region, south-western areas of Japan. There are 5 official groups belonging to the Ise-daikagura Kosha , an association which is located in Kuwana city, Mie prefecture. The present research focuses on Morimoto-Chudayu troupe within the association, which visits Shodoshima island every October for their traveling ritual. The purpose of this paper is to reveal the mutual relationship between the local culture of Shodoshima island and Ise-daikagura from the perspective of livelihood, folk belief, and folk festivals.
The first chapter introduces the historical, territorial backgrounds of Ise-daikagura’s ritual in Shodoshima. Chapter 2 analyses the relationship between the livelihood such as fishing, agriculture and hotel business in the island and Ise-daikagura’s visit. Chapter 3 reports that the folk beliefs in deities of home and village shrines are connected to the warm treatment of the villagers who welcome Ise-daikagura annually. Chapter 4 shows the influence of Ise-daikagura to the local festivals and performances.
From a series of investigations, the relationship between Ise-daikagura and the folk culture of Shodoshima island such as local festivals and folk performances are thought to be comparatively indirect and fluent while the villagers’ folk religious beliefs and the strong expectation for the visiting performers are thought to have obvious connections to the culture of welcoming Isedaikagura’s performance every year.departmental bulletin pape
Practice and Teaching of Classic Performing Arts in Hokkaido: Interview with a Nagauta Teacher
Get PDFThe acquirement, teaching and performance of classic performing arts such as Nagauta and Japanese dance have been understood through the careers of the masters and well-known performers. However, not much is known about the activities among the mid-level members of a given school, particularly those in areas that are not considered major. This study reveals the development of Shamisen music in non-major areas, especially the process of practice and teaching of classic performing arts in Hokkaido as well as the relationship between the teacher and the local community, by interviewing a person who has been engaged in teaching Shamisen music and dance by taking over the role from her mother.
The first part describes the interviewee’s mother, a Nagauta teacher born in 1920. She started to learn classic performing arts in the beginning of the 1930s at her parents’ suggestion. After graduating from girls’ high school, she became a live-in disciple of Kineya Rokuichiro and acquired a license for Kineya Nagauta School in her teens. Having received this license, she returned to her hometown where she taught the people Nagauta before and after World War II. The interview unveiled the facts that she became independent as a teacher because she not only gained financial support and an understanding in performing arts from her parents, but she was also closely related with the local community with regard to her activity.
The second part focuses on the interviewee. She learned Shamisen music under her mother’s teaching. She also learned Hanayagi School of Japanese dance and obtained a teaching license at the age of 23, after which she taught dance to the people. Moreover, she was engaged in events to promote activities of the area, such as Bon dance, by teaching dance and changing choreography. She has been selected to sing regional songs (not the folk songs that have been transmitted from the past but the songs intentionally made at that times) at events as well. Although she is a teacher of classic performing arts, it is clear that she had some other roles expected by the local community.departmental bulletin pape
Selection and Characterization of Enzymes for Removal of Microbial Contamination on the Mural Paintings of the Takamatsuzuka and Kitora Tumuli
Get PDFOn the surface of the mural paintings of the Takamatsuzuka and Kitora Tumuli, there exist undesirable biofilms made of microbial cells of fungi, yeast, bacteria and their extracellular substances. To remove the biofilms, cell lytic enzymes were selected and examined for the effects on various restorative materials and mineral pigments that are identical with the mural paintings of the Takamatsuzuka and Kitora Tumuli. Among the commercially produced enzymes, Achromopeptidase, Lysozyme, β-1,3-glucanase and chitinase were selected. To evaluate the effects of these enzymes on the restorative materials, degradation activity was examined using nine substrates: hydroxypropyl cellulose, methyl cellulose, purified funori, carboxymethyl cellulose, filter paper, starch, xylan, casein and palmitic acid. As a result, Achromopeptidase showed no degradation activity to tested restorative materials other than casein. Thus, the use of Achromopeptidase is inappropriate when using restorative materials based on proteins such as glue. Lysozyme, β-1,3-glucanase and chitinase showed no degradation activity to any of the restorative materials. Regarding the influence on mineral pigments, color difference became large in the gold foil and silver foil samples in all cases. It is considered that this is because the enzyme solution dried and solidified on the surface of the metal foil, and the solute component of the enzyme precipitated. Therefore, in actual cleaning work, it is considered that change in color hardly occurs because enzyme solution is suctioned before drying. The results suggest that the enzymes tested in this study can be applied for removing microbial contamination on the mural paintings of the Takamatsuzuka and Kitora Tumuli.journal articl
Study on the Environmental Control of the Stack Room in a Closed Library by Periodically Moving Shelves
Get PDFIn addition to the open library the Institute has a closed library where around 300,000 books and magazines are stored.There is a concern that books in the closed library on the third floor often suffer from mold growth,although the measured temperature and humidity are within an acceptable range due to air conditioning operating from 9o’clock to 18 o’clock.Last year,after detection of mold growth,it was found that there was a temperature difference between inside and outside the stack,although bookshelves are set to have an average space of about 10cm at the end of work time to promote air draft. Thus, an experiment was conducted to eliminate the temperature difference between shelves when they were electrically moved periodically before work time. Temperature and humidity were measured inside and outside the stack.It was found that relative humidity increased as temperature increased inside, while relative humidity decreased as temperature increased outside. It was also found that the maximum temperature difference inside the stack was about 4degrees centigrade.In order to bring the environment inside closer to the environment outside, a new way was made to move the shelves electrically at intervals of one minute. It was found that the environment inside the stack could be brought close to the condition of environment outside the stack.
This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant Number 15H02786.journal articl