Vintage Japanese Ningyo Geisha Doll Gofun Folk Costume Display Case 8"

Description

Vintage ningyô or Japanese doll with short cropped hair, dressed in red and gold Kimono, carrying strings of hats. Doll is set and displayed in a wood and glass display case. “Japanese dolls (人形, ningyō, lit. ""human form"") are one of the traditional Japanese crafts.

There are various types of traditional dolls, some representing children and babies, some the imperial court, warriors and heroes, fairy-tale characters, gods and (rarely) demons, and also people of the daily life of Japanese cities. Many have a long tradition and are still made today for household shrines, formal gift-giving, or for festival celebrations such as Hinamatsuri, the doll festival, or Kodomo no Hi, Children's Day. Some are manufactured as a local craft, to be purchased by pilgrims as a souvenir of a temple visit or some other trip.” “Gofun is a kind of pigment. Now it refers to pigments which are made from shells and consist primarily of calcium carbonate. It is called Gofun (胡粉) because it was brought from Ko (胡) which meant the western part of China before. It referred white lead (lead carbonate basic) in ancient times. It is used to color Japanese paintings and dolls.

Materials
Clamshells are used to realize a higher whiteness degree, but materials like oyster and scallop shells are also used because they work easily. The shellfishes are the same as those eaten, but shells with a higher whiteness degree are searched from all over the country.

Process for making
Expose shells to the sun for a period of between a few months and decades until weathered. Therefore it is longer for hard shells such as clamshells. Crush shells after exposure to the sun, mix it with water to make it clayey, roll it out on a board and completed after exposing to the sun again.”

Condition

Good Overall – Doll very good, chips and wear to wood display case

Dimensions

5.75” x 4.25” x 8” (Width x Depth x Height)