Left Jingorō

Japanese: 左甚五郎 - ひだり・じんごろう

He was known as a master carver during the Edo period, and there are many carvings throughout Japan that are said to be the work of Jingoro, such as the sleeping cat at Nikko Toshogu Shrine and the dragon at Ueno Toshogu Shrine in Tokyo. According to Kurokawa Dosuke's Enpekikenki (1675), "someone called Jingoro of the Left" "skilled in craftsmanship with his left hand" and created the openwork carvings at Kitano Shrine in Kyoto and the dragon carvings at Toyokuni Shrine. This shows that there were already legends about Jingoro at this time, and we also know that "left" does not refer to a family name but to the left hand. The name of Jingoro, the chief carpenter, appears in the rank registers of the Ikoma family in Takamatsu, Shikoku (two types, from 1633 and 16), and what is said to be his grave still exists, but the grave is not very old. In any case, Jingoro is a legendary figure and should be considered a kind of heroic legend born among the common people. From the mid-Edo period onwards, it became popular to use a lot of carvings at shrines and temples, and this is probably what led to the legend.

(Nishi Kazuo)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

江戸時代に彫物の名手として知られた人物で,日光東照宮の眠り猫,東京上野東照宮の竜など,甚五郎の作品と伝えられる彫物は全国に多数存在する。黒川道祐の『遠碧軒記』(1675)によると,「左の甚五郎と云もの」が「左の手にて細工を上手に」し,京都の北野神社の透彫や豊国神社の竜の彫物を作ったという。この当時すでに甚五郎に関する伝承があったことを示すが,左は姓ではなく左手を示したこともわかる。四国高松の生駒家の分限帳(寛永10〈1633〉年,同16年の2種)に大工頭の甚五郎の名があり,その墓とされるものも現存するが,墓は古いものではない。いずれにせよ甚五郎は伝承上の人物で,庶民の間に生まれた英雄伝説の一種と考えるべきである。江戸中期以降,神社や寺院に彫物を多用することが流行し,これが伝説と結び付いたのであろう。

(西和夫)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

<<: Left-handed snail (left-handed snail) - Left-handed snail (English spelling) Enhadra quaesita

>>: Left-handed