Twelve-layered kimono

Formal attire for court ladies. It was called Nyobo Shozoku because it was the attire of high-ranking ladies-in-waiting who were given rooms in the Imperial Court, and was also called Mo and Karaginu because it was an outfit consisting of a mo (sash) and a karaginu (robe) in addition to the uchiki (robe) worn in daily life. In the late Heian period, "Masasuke Shozokusho," it is written that "Mo, Karaginu, and Kokiharibakama are called sauzo of ladies-in-waiting." Junihitoe was a popular name, referring to the appearance of wearing many layers of uchiki over a hitoe (single layer), but it seems that in the early modern period, the outfit of wearing a mo and karaginu on top of this was mistakenly called Junihitoe. For example, in the chapter on the drowning of Kenreimon'in in the "Genpei Jōsuiki," it is likely that this is a misunderstanding of the passage that reads, "As this was at the end of the Yayoi period, she wore a twelve-layered robe made of wisteria."

The number of layers of uchiki was not limited to twelve, but could be more or less. In the Eiga Monogatari, there is an extreme example of twenty layers, but from the end of the Heian period, five layers was considered appropriate and called ittsuginu. The original form of the junihitoe was the morning dress of court ladies stipulated in the Yoro Clothing Order, and consisted of a robe, a skirt, a sash, and sandals. Or, as seen in the Engishiki, the Tang-style garments of the 9th century Empress's robe, back coat, hitoe, hire, uwamo, shitamo, hakama, hitebakama were modified and lengthened from the mid-Heian period into gentle and elegant clothing that adapted to the natural environment and lifestyle of Japan. That is, the Nara period's tarikubi-style garments, which were tailored to have hollowed-out sides, became straight-cut, the thin sleeves became wide, the length became longer, and it became a type of uchikake, also called uchikake, and took the form of an oudoki. The traditional long-skirt-like miko could no longer be wrapped around the waist, but was changed to a formal garment worn at the back with the hem pulled up, and worn only on formal occasions, and the character 裳 was replaced with 裙. The under-hakama worn under the skirt was also lengthened, and the appearance was improved to become the so-called naga-hakama. The sleeveless short garment, the seshi, was also enlarged, and made into a hanging-style garment with two widths, with sleeves added and called karagino (a robe with long sleeves) and worn over the uchigi. The composition of the junihitoe, the morning dress that was modified in this way, was crimson hakama, hitoe (a robe with the same shape as the uchigi but with longer sleeves and length) worn over several layers of uchigi, and for sunny events, uchiginu (a robe with a shiny finish made by beating with a kinuta) were added, and on top of that, a beautiful outer layer of uchigi was worn, a skirt was worn around the waist, the karagino was worn, and a hiogi (a folding fan) was held. For a more gorgeous formal outfit, a scarf and a skirt sash were added, the hair was tied up and a hairpin was inserted, and it was called a Tang costume or a monogu. The scarf was a shawl made of gauze or thin silk, the skirt sash was a variation of a hebi obi, and it was a long decorative sash that hung on both sides of the waist, the hairpin was a hairpin, and the hair was a simplified version of the topknot worn in formal wear, with part of the forehead tied up in a round shape, secured with a hairpin and tied with a braided cord. This outfit was worn as a formal dress by ladies-in-waiting who served as attendants, guardians, and women's treasurers in the Imperial Ceremony, and by dancers who performed the Gosechi Festival.

Apart from formal attire for special occasions, the normal Junihitoe does not follow strict regulations like the men's official attire of Sokutai and Ikan, and was somewhat free in terms of materials, patterns, and colors, and could be used according to preference. For example, the robe of the official outer garment follows the color corresponding to the rank, that is, the Toujiki, and the shades of the color of both the outer garment and the inner garment are expressed in deep and light, whereas the Junihitoe uses colors other than the Toujiki, or the color combination, and the shades are expressed in dark and light, so it can be said that it has the characteristics of private clothing despite being an official attire. This is because it was the clothing worn in private life, so to speak, in the Imperial Court's inner palace. After the Kamakura period, the decline of the court noble class led to a simplification of clothing, and the karaginu was worn first, followed by the mo, and sometimes the mo was omitted. Furthermore, in the late Muromachi period, the kokoro (string) of the mo was tied in advance, and when serving, it was worn instantly by draping it over the chest from the back; this string was called kakeobi. This style of mo was used until the late Edo period, in 1844, when the so-called Tenpo Restoration brought about a return to the traditional way of wearing the mo with the kokoro tied around the waist. Also, during the Edo period, the trend of tying hair spread to the general public, and court ladies also tied their hair and added kamoji, forming hairstyles called dai (Osuberakashi) and chu (Chu), and in the dai style, a gilt bronze flat frame was decorated on the forehead and held in place with a hairpin, with a crescent-shaped comb inserted underneath, as attire for important occasions.

There were summer and winter distinctions for the junihitoe, and people changed into koromogae on April 1st and October 1st, but according to the "Manzasukei Sozokusho," there were further changes during the Heian period, with people wearing neriginu with cotton padding from October 1st, thin robes from April 1st, twisted robes in May, single-layered robes from June, twisted robes from August 1st to 14th, raw-woven lined robes from August 15th to September 8th, and raw-woven robes with cotton padding from September 9th. In addition, people carried paper fans called kawahori in summer and hiogi fans in winter, which they held up to their faces when appearing in public.

The materials used for the junihitoe varied according to rank, age and season, and those permitted to use colors and fabrics that were generally forbidden, i.e. forbidden colors, could wear deep colors such as blue, red, purple or crimson, double-layered fabrics with patterns created by embroidering in addition to ground patterns, and solid or floating fabrics woven with dyed or kneaded threads. Those of middle rank or higher wore twill or plain silk, while those of lower ranks wore only plain silk. Generally, high-ranking young people wore floating fabrics, while adulthood wore solid or twill, and generally young people wore small patterns, adulthood wore large patterns, and older people wore plain patterns. Since the Junihitoe is a type of kimono with overlapping layers, pictorial patterns are exceptionally used on the skirt, and elegant woven patterns that are neatly repeated are used on the Karaginu and Ukimono, with more attention paid to color, and the combination of colors between the outer and lining and the overlapping Ukimono, and the color combinations of the warp and weft threads, so-called overlapping colors, are elaborately used to express a sense of the seasons and literary sentiment. This type of Junihitoe has had a great influence on the history of Japanese clothing with its elegant beauty, such as the rich volume expressed by the numerous overlapping layers of the garments, the elegant harmony and contrast of colors, and the complex line composition of the garments' crests.

[Takada Yamato]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

公家(くげ)女子の正装。朝廷出仕の女官で部屋を与えられた高位の者の服装であるため女房装束(にょうぼうしょうぞく)とよばれ、また日常に着用している袿(うちき)に裳(も)と唐衣(からぎぬ)を加える服装であるため裳・唐衣ともいわれた。平安時代末期の『満佐須計(まさすけ)装束抄』に「も・からぎぬ・こきはりばかま、これを女房のさうぞくというなり」と記されている。十二単は俗称で、単(ひとえ)の上に数多くの袿を襲(かさ)ね着した袿姿をさす名であったが、近世になって、これに裳と唐衣を着た服装を誤って十二単と称したものと思われる。たとえば『源平盛衰記』建礼門院入水(じゅすい)の段で「弥生(やよい)の末の事なれば、藤(ふじ)がさねの十二単の御衣を召され」という記述を誤解したものであろう。

　襲(かさね)の袿は十二領に限られるわけではなく、それ以上、それ以下の場合もあった。『栄花(えいが)物語』には二十領も襲ねたという極端な例もみられるが、平安時代末期より、五領が適当として五衣(いつつぎぬ)と称した。十二単の原型は養老(ようろう)の衣服令(りょう)に規定された女官の朝服で、衣、紕裙(そえのも)、紕帯(そえのおび)、履(くつ)という構成。あるいは『延喜式(えんぎしき)』にみられる9世紀ころの中宮の袍(ほう)、背子(はいし)、単、領巾(ひれ)、表裙(うわも)、下裙(したも)、袴(はかま)、単袴という構成のごとき唐様式が、平安時代中期以降、日本の自然環境に順応し、生活様式に適合する柔和で優雅な服装に改められ、長大化したものである。すなわち、奈良時代の両脇(わき)をえぐる形に仕立てられた垂領(たりくび)仕立ての衣は、直線断ち式となり、細い袖(そで)が広袖化し、身丈が長くなって袿ともよばれ、襲ね着形式となった。そこで従来のロングスカート状の裙は腰に巻けず、形を変えて後ろ腰に着けて裾(すそ)を引き、改まったときにのみ着用する形式的なものとなり、裳という字を裙にかえて用いた。また裙の下にはいていた下袴を長大化して、いわゆる長袴として体裁を整えた。袖なしの短衣である背子も大形化し、垂領形式で二幅(ふたの)仕立てとし、袖をつけて唐衣とよんで袿の上に着用した。このように変形した朝服である十二単の構成は、紅(くれない)の袴をはき、単といって、袿と同形であるが裄(ゆき)や身丈が長く単仕立ての衣の上に袿を数領襲ね、晴の行事には砧(きぬた)で打ってつやを出した打衣(うちぎぬ)を加え、さらにその上に美しい袿の表着を襲ね、腰に裳を着け、唐衣を着て、檜扇(ひおうぎ)を持つ。いっそう華やかな晴装束として領巾と裙帯(くんたい)を加え、髪上げして釵子(さいし)を挿し唐装束とか物の具と称した。領巾は紗(しゃ)や薄絹の肩掛け、裙帯は紕帯が変化したもので、腰の左右に長く垂らした飾帯、釵子は簪(かんざし)、髪上げは礼服の宝髻(ほうけい)を簡略化したもの、前頭部の一部を束ねて丸く形づくり釵子で留め組紐(くみひも)で結んだ。この服装は大儀の供奉(ぐぶ)、執翳(はとり)、女蔵人(にょくろうど)などを務める女房、五節(ごせち)の舞姫の礼装として行われた。

　晴の日の礼装は別として、通常の十二単は男子の公服である束帯や衣冠のごとき厳格な規定に従うものではなく、材質、文様、色目などやや自由で好みによる使用もあった。たとえば公服の上着の袍が官位相当の色、すなわち当色(とうじき)に従うものであり、また上着も内着も色の濃淡を深浅で示すのに対して、十二単では、当色以外の色、あるいは襲色目でよび、濃淡を濃き薄きで表している点で、公服にして私服的性格を帯びたものといえる。それは朝廷内の後宮で、いわば私的生活における服装という理由による。鎌倉時代以降、朝廷公家階級の衰退による服装の簡略化が行われ、唐衣を先に着て裳をつけ、ときに裳を省略する場合も生じた。さらに室町時代後期には裳の小腰（紐）をまえもって結んでおき、奉仕のときに背から胸に掛けて即時に着用しうる方法とし、その紐を懸帯(かけおび)とよんだ。この形式の裳は江戸時代後期、天保(てんぽう)15年（1844）まで使われ、いわゆる天保の御再興によって小腰を腰部で締める古式の着法に戻った。また江戸時代に結髪の風が一般に広まり、女官も髪を結ってかもじを加え、大(だい)（おおすべらかし）や中(ちゅう)といわれる髪形とし、大には額の上に金銅製の平額を飾って釵子で留め、その下に月形の櫛(くし)を挿して大儀のときの装いとした。

　十二単には夏冬の区別があり、4月1日と10月1日に更衣(ころもがえ)をしたが、『満佐須計装束抄』によると、平安時代にはさらに変化があって、10月1日より練衣(ねりぎぬ)で綿入れ、4月1日より薄衣、5月に捻(ひね)り襲、6月より単(ひとえ)襲、8月1日から14日まで捻り襲、8月15日より9月8日まで生織の袷(あわせ)、9月9日より生織の衣で綿入れを着るとある。なお、夏に蝙蝠(かわほり)とよばれた紙扇を持ち、冬に檜扇(ひおうぎ)を手にして、人前に出るとき顔にかざした。

　十二単の材質は身分・年齢・季節によって異なり、一般に用いることを禁じられた色や織物、すなわち禁色(きんじき)の使用を許された者は、青色や赤色、紫や紅の濃い色、地文様のほかに縫取織で文様を表した二重織物や、糸のうちに染めたり練って織った固(かた)織物や浮織物を用いることができた。中位以上の者は綾(あや)や平絹を、下位の者は平絹のみ用いた。概して高位の若年は浮織物、成年以後は固織物や綾を用い、一般に若年が小形の、成年以後は大形の文様を用い、老年は無文のものを使った。十二単は襲ね着形式のため、絵画的文様は裳に例外的に表され、唐衣、袿などには整然と繰り返される上品な織文様が使われ、それよりは色彩に気を配り、さらに表地と裏地、襲の袿の衣服相互の色の組合せ、経糸(たていと)と緯糸(よこいと)による色の配合など、いわゆる襲色目によって趣向を凝らし、季節感や文学的情趣をも表出した。このような十二単は、数多くの衣の襲が表す豊かな量感、優雅な色彩の調和と対照、複雑な衣紋の線の構成など、典麗な美しさによって日本の服装史上多大な影響を与えた。

［高田倭男］

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