#2570

My seven-tiered Hina doll set

The photo shows my seven-tiered Hina doll set. My grandpa bought the set for me when I was a baby.

Platforms covered with a red carpet are used to display a set of ornamental dolls (雛人形 hina-ningyō) representing the Emperor, Empress, attendants, and musicians in traditional court dress of the Heian period. I like looking at my own dolls's faces as they are hand-made and each one has a different face.

When we display them every year, taking about an hour or so, we always have a reference picture in our hands so that we can place them in the correct way. We almost always have same conversation every year as to how to place the Emperor and Empress. The Kantō region and Kansai region have different placement orders of the top couple dolls from left to right.

The traditional arrangement had the male on the right, while modern arrangements had him on the left (from the viewer's perspective). This comes from the Japanese traditional custom of reserving the highest seat on the left (from the view of those who are sitting). But the Japanese Emperor started to follow the international manner (male standing on the right) from the Meiji era. That is how the Emperor takes his position on the occasion the Imperial Family members stand on the central part of the veranda for the New Year Greeting today.

It's interesting to know such a hisotry has affected how to arrange hina ningyo! I hope you can have an opportunity to look at a hina doll set displayed at home (not in the store) one day during your stay in Japan. It's very nice.

EmiOnishi image

EmiOnishi

Japan

EmiOnishi's other advice

Enoshima - "Jewel of Shonan" Festival images

Enoshima - "Jewel of Shonan" Festival

Enoshima Island has been lit up for the "Jewel of Shonan" Festival, with delightful night time illuminations at various locations, including the Sea Candle Lighthouse, Samuel Cocking Garden, some of …

Kyara-ben or chara-ben Culture images

Kyara-ben or chara-ben Culture

It is a shortened form of character bento. As Autumn is season for sports festivals in Japan, it comes up in our conversations between moms. Moms decorate homemade food to look like cute characters i…

High Quality Fruits in Japan images

High Quality Fruits in Japan

The other day, I found giant "New Pione" grapes at a local supermarket and I could help buying one even though the price was rather high compared to other grapes (750 yen per pack while regular grape…

Ginza Ogura at Haneda Airport images

Ginza Ogura at Haneda Airport

Haneda’s international terminal has an impressive selection of good restaurants in a nicely designed area called the Edo Market Place, although they are all relatively expensive. Once you check in yo…

Oiran Parade : The screamingly bright colors! images

Oiran Parade : The screamingly bright colors!

Shinagawa Shukuba Festival is held on the last Saturday and Sunday of September every year. We just had one two weeks ago. One performance you should not miss is the parade of oiran (courtesans) wear…

"Matsutake" Mushrooms images

"Matsutake" Mushrooms

Autumn is "Shokuyoku no aki" (time of hearty appetites). As the heat goes away, the Japanese enjoy seasonal foods such as chestnuts, mashrooms, sweet potatos and Pacific saury to name a few. Sometime…

You might also like

What to do at a Japanese Funeral | Funeral Etiquette images

What to do at a Japanese Funeral | Funeral Etiquette

Attending a Japanese funeral can be stressful, even shocking, if you don't know what to do. The more you know beforehand the better, as you'll be able to comfort and support mutual friends and their …

Former Deep Japan Writer image

Former Deep Japan Writer

Don't Wear Black in Japan images

Don't Wear Black in Japan

In Japan, the color white is attributed to happiness and good times. Death is a time of mourning and so people must dress in the color of depression, black. Men usually wear a black suit with a black…

GenS image

GenS

Yurei, Yokai and Obake: Japan's Very Busy Ghost Scene images

Yurei, Yokai and Obake: Japan's Very Busy Ghost Scene

Ghosts and spirits hold a place in the folklore of many cultures around the world. In the western world, Halloween, observed on October 31st, is a time for scary, spooky tales, while Latin America w…

jdlawrence image

jdlawrence

Enjoy bath, Japanese style images

Enjoy bath, Japanese style

Enjoy taking bath with Babu(Bub), a popular Japanese bath tablet to Relax after Exploring Japan on Foot.All travelers know how sight seeing can be exhausting. Especially walking around on foot, t…

mimichan image

mimichan

Ride The Tokyo Metro Like A Boss With These Apps images

Ride The Tokyo Metro Like A Boss With These Apps

To people new to Japan, the Tokyo subway system, stylishly called "Tokyo Metro" is a confusing labyrinth of lines going every which way. Orderly thought and planning, it would appear, seem to be the…

jdlawrence image

jdlawrence

Why Do Japanese People Call Mt. Fuji, Mr. Fuji? images

Why Do Japanese People Call Mt. Fuji, Mr. Fuji?

If you wondered why Japanese people refer to Mt. Fuji as Mr. Fuji, you are not alone.When I first came to Japan, and actually until about two years ago, well okay, actually it still happens a lot…

 image