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John Lindsey
10th June 2000, 06:58
Kappan are blood seals that date from the Muromachi period. While sometimes referred to as blood oaths, I think seal is a more proper description. Normally, the ring finger of the left hand was cut with a small knife just below the nail. The blood was then dabbed to the ring finger of the right hand and then pressed onto the document under his name.

Related to kappan are tsume-in (nail seals) and bo-in (thumb seals), used by lower caste people who did not have a regular seal (han). The bo-in was basically a fingerprint of the thumb and normally is was the right thumb that was used.

During the Edo period these bo-in were used for criminal investigation, but it is unclear exactly how this was done (anyone know?). Criminals would seal their confessions with a bo-in.

Kolschey
10th June 2000, 07:40
Given the social conditions of Edo period Japan, it seems most convenient for the authorities to use a thumbprint for criminal confessions. No one ever said the thumb had to be attached to the perpitrator... http://216.10.1.92/ubb/wink.gif

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Krzysztof M. Mathews
" For I am the Cat who walks by himself, and all places are alike to me"
-Rudyard Kipling

kagebushi
11th June 2000, 11:00
Here is something related. There was an article in the Japan Times about two weeks ago, Where a female police officer admitted that she signed a statement with her thumbprint, instead of the women who made the statement. A lady was sexually assaulted, she filed a police report, the female officer who took the report, forgot to make her sign it, so she signed it herself (with her fingerprint). The victim returned, the next day to the police station to discover that someone else had signed her statement. The female officer denied at first, but than confessed her wrongdoing.

Note of the author: http://216.10.1.92/ubb/biggrin.gif The article did not mention if the thumbprint was done with blood or ink.


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Mark Brecht

John Lindsey
30th January 2003, 17:24
Another bump of an old post.

Todd Schweinhart
30th January 2003, 21:59
Hey,
I don't remember seeing this one in the past. Another interesting thing about Keppan is that some ryu used alternative methods to initiate their nyumonsha. Anyone heard of any of these methods? I have heard that some used various hiden (secret) methods of teachings such as kuji and kuji kiri.

Best,
Todd Schweinhart
Louisville Kentucky