masterpiece

Japanese: masterpiece

…In the Middle Ages, like other guilds, the guild was an organization created to regulate and support painters in each city, and to exclude foreign competitors. Members were all master painters who paid membership fees, and aspiring painters were only allowed to work as painters after undergoing a certain period of training in the master's studio and submitting a work (masterpiece, or Meisterstück) to the guild. The rules prohibited non-members, including foreign painters, who had not undergone this process from producing works, and the sale of works produced outside the guild. The number of years of training and the number of apprentices a master could have at the same time were also determined by the guild's rules, although this varied slightly depending on the city. …

From 【Craftsman】

…As the population of the city grew, so did the number of apprentices and craftsmen, but the number of master shares was fixed, and the number of craftsmen who could not become masters increased, which became a major problem. Therefore, a system was established in which those who had worked as craftsmen for a certain period of time were required to submit a Masterpiece or Meisterstück, and those who passed the examination could finally become masters by paying the union membership fee and other fees. However, because the number of master shares was limited, the master's children were given priority, and it was a long way for ordinary craftsmen to become masters. …

From the Apprenticeship System

…On the continent, it was customary for craftsmen to travel around to different places to improve their skills, but in England, this was not necessarily the case. In order for a craftsman to obtain a master's qualification, he had to create a masterpiece and have it examined by a guild member. This helped maintain the standard of technique and the quality of the product. …

*Some of the terminology that mentions "masterpiece" is listed below.

Source | Heibonsha World Encyclopedia 2nd Edition | Information

Japanese:

…西洋中世において，他の同業組合(ギルド)と同じく，各都市の画家の相互規制と相互扶助，ならびに外来の競争者の排除を目的としてつくられた組織。組合員は会費を納める親方画家のみで構成され，画家志望者は親方の工房で一定期間の修業を積み，組合に親方資格作品masterpiece,Meisterstückを提出して，初めて画家としての活動を認められた(徒弟制度)。外来の画家を含めこの過程を経ていない非組合員の制作活動，および外部で制作された作品の販売は規約により禁止され，修業年数や，同一時期に1人の親方が擁し得る弟子の数も，都市により多少の差はあるものの組合の規約で定められていた。…

【職人】より

…都市人口の増大とともに徒弟や職人の数も増加していったが，親方株の数は定められており，親方になれない職人の数が増大してゆき，大きな問題となっていた。そこで一定の期間職人として勤めた者が親方作品Masterpiece,Meisterstückを提出し，審査に合格した者は組合加入金その他を支払って，やっと親方になれるという道がつけられるようになった。しかし親方株が限定されていたため，親方の子弟がまず優先され，一般の職人には親方への道は遠かった。…