Fish Pendant

[Deleted]

Katsumori-shi-i,

At West 12th Night, I asked you about a glass fish pendant you were wearing as a sagemono. You indicated that it was a sort of badge denoting you as a courtier with palace access (denjoubito). Can you, (or anybody) point me at any sources where I can read up on this practice? I'm once again obviously using the wrong search terms.

[Please Delete]

So here are some of the later ones:

www.kobijutsu-kyoto.jp/monthly/10/03/10-03-05.html

The one I had was from the National Museum in Tokyo and it is a replica of this:

nogakusanpo.maya-g.com/img/240-2.jpg

Given the description, I think that this matches up with the early Tang style of token, which was a fish dangled on a silk cord. I'm still not sure if that's what these were, but they fit the early description.

I'd *really* like one of the Heian and later versions, which appear to be a box, wrapped in samegawa, and then with gold and/or silver fish around the outside.

-Ii

[Deleted]

Thanks for your reply, it gave me some good leads.

The "box" versions appear to be called "Sekitai" (not sure if I have that right, it's maybe 魚袋 in Kanji) which seems to mean "fish bag". This may mean that the ornate box has the glass fish inside it.

Most of the web sites I can find that talk about this object at all are actually talking about Hina dolls. They all show it hanging from the belt of stones just to the back of the right hip. They all show it as part of the full formal costume, worn with the sokutai sugata. (This, by the way is a great guide to how to put on a sokutai sugata - www2u.biglobe.ne.jp/~konoe/kamunabi_krm_02.htm , though the wearer does not look happy about it.)

Trying to scale things up from pictures of dolls, the box is maybe five or six inches long, 1.5 inches wide, and about an inch deep. I concur that it looks like it's covered in gilded rayskin.

I was wondering about this mostly because of its possible use for marking rank in the SCA, of course. Since few people in the SCA actually have the kind of "proper court garb" with which this would be worn, I don't think it's generally useful. Unfortunately. I think I might stop wearing medallions around my neck, though, and start dangling them from the back right of my waist.

[Saionji Shonagon]

Jan 26, 2012 12:23:55 GMT -5 @ishiyama said:

Unfortunately. I think I might stop wearing medallions around my neck, though, and start dangling them from the back right of my waist.

Believe me, I've been contemplating ways to deal with representing the Laurel without having crap hanging around my neck. Fortunately, the chip carved wooden one Master Edward LeKervere gave me is sturdy enough that hanging it off my obi is definitely an option.