Photo: Japanese male with swords and armor (vintage)

[John Lindsey]

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[Karl Friday]

John, this is a really interesting photo. Do you have any background information on it--when it was shot, who the guy is, etc.?

What makes me curious is that there are several anomalies in the picture. First, he's wearing the long sword upside down (blade down), a position that not only runs counter to the normal etiquette, but would make it almost impossible to acutally draw the silly thing. Second, he has the sageo on both swords done up in elaborate knots, rather than using them to keep the weapons in his belt. Third, he appears to have shortly-cropped hair. Fourth, he's wearing what appear to be jika tabi, which I believe didn't exist until at least the 20th century (although I wouldn't bet on this point); he doesn't seem to be wearing geta or waraji sandels over the tabi, which suggests that they must have soles, like the modern rubber-soled ones worn by construction workers. And finally, he's carrying an early kendo do (not armor).

I wonder if this isn't a 20th century shot of some kendo student of townsman or peasant extraction? If the guy in the photograph really was a samurai, or from a samurai family, and the picture really was taken during the Meiji period or earlier, it tells us a lot about diversity within samurai customs!

Nifty stuff!

[Karl Friday]

Oops, I just looked at the photo again, and noticed that he does appear to be wearing waraji. On the other hand, he seems to be standing on a carpet.

[Walker]

Just to throw some conjecture out there with not much to back it up.
It is my understanding that a good amount of photography produced around the turn of the century would have been done as exotica for an European audience rather than portraiture or documentary work. I could very easily see some photographer grabbing household staff and constructing a fantasy like the one seen above.

[Gmason]

Looking carefully he appears to be carrying his bogu with what looks like quite a modern shinia.

Gareth Mason
Do Shin Ken Yu Kai
www.doshinkenyukai-kendo.org.uk

[Peisho]

Originally posted by Karl Friday
John, this is a really interesting photo. Do you have any background information on it--when it was shot, who the guy is, etc.?

What makes me curious is that there are several anomalies in the picture. First, he's wearing the long sword upside down (blade down), a position that not only runs counter to the normal etiquette, but would make it almost impossible to acutally draw the silly thing.

That is the custom manner to wear a sword when walking through a village to show that he is not looking for a fight. Its that same way they wear swords when visitors entered the big pagodas to visit great lords.

Second, he has the sageo on both swords done up in elaborate knots, rather than using them to keep the weapons in his belt.

Most samurai were too lazy to tie their swords down except if they were traveling. Some even carried their swords instead of holstering them in the obi.

Third, he appears to have shortly-cropped hair.

It looks fine to me. Just as long as its still able to be tied up in a little knob.

Fourth, he's wearing what appear to be jika tabi, which I believe didn't exist until at least the 20th century (although I wouldn't bet on this point); he doesn't seem to be wearing geta or waraji sandels over the tabi, which suggests that they must have soles, like the modern rubber-soled ones worn by construction workers.

The early jika tabi were made from hemp or cotton soles. It looks like he is wearing leggins too because I dont think jika tabi went up that high.


I think this was a very low class commoner or perhaps a messenger of some sort. The two things that caught my attention are that he seems to be doing peasant work and he looks like a farmer. Anyway its a nice pic.