旦暮庁 TANBO-CHŌ

Introduction

Sei Shonagon was a member of the Heian Japanese court and (during the time portrayed in her book) a Lady-in-Waiting to the Empress/ Wife of the Emperor of Japan. The Pillow Book, completed in 1002, is a series of observations, stories, and ruminations about Sei’s life as a Heian courtier.

Anyone who carefully reads the Pillow Book will find that A.) Sei Shonagon is an incredibly entertaining author, and B.) the information found therein provides a wealth of detail regarding the culture, and specifically the material culture, of the Heian Capital (Heian-kyo, or simply The Capital.) In particular, Sei provides the reader with many descriptions of the clothing of the people around her. In this article we are going to try to gather together the majority of clothing descriptions in The Pillow Book and provide some basic analysis of those descriptions.

Following the compiled excerpts are a few observational notes and a listing of colors mentioned in the text. We hope that these observations will be helpful to any reenactor or historical recreationist interested in historical Japan by providing more context and information about the clothing in vogue during the 11th century and after.

Methodology

The Pillow Book, as translated by Ivan Morris, is transcribed in its entirety on archive.org. Along with increased accessibility to the casual reader, this format allows for quick searching for key terms used in Shonagon’s clothing description. This collection of excerpts was compiled by using the simple Find function in Google Chrome and then copying excerpts which matched the search terms. For example, search terms included: court cloak, cloak, costume, hunting costume, robe, lacquered, trousers, Chinese jacket, clogs, etc. The resulting matches were then sorted by the chapters in which they occur. While we believe that this methodology has gathered the vast majority (and hopefully all) of description excerpts, there is not a guarantee that this compilation is exhaustive, and so there may be other gems in the text not found here. If you are interested in thoroughly checking for missed descriptions, we encourage you to read either the Ivan Morris translation of the Pillow Book, or find another suitable translation to enjoy. (Of course, those who can read the Japanese version can go straight to the source.)

Excerpts

These excerpts were retrieved from – https://archive.org/stream/the-pillow-book/The%20Pillow%20Book_djvu.txt which is a transcription of the Pillow Book by Sei Shonagon, translated into English by Ivan Morris

• Ch. 3 – It may be an ordinary guest, or possibly one of their Highnesses, the Empress’s elder brothers; but in any case the visitor will wear a cherry-coloured 1131 Court cloak, from the bottom of which his under-robe emerges.
• Ch. 11 – Fujiwara no Korechika, arrived. He was dressed in a cherry-coloured Court cloak, sufficiently worn to have lost its stiffness, a white under-robe, and loose trousers of dark purple; from beneath the cloak shone the pattern of another robe of dark red damask.
• Ch. 11 – A group of ladies-in-waiting was seated behind the bamboo blinds. Their cherry-coloured Chinese jackets hung loosely over their shoulders with the collars pulled back; they wore robes of wisteria, golden yellow, and other colours, many of which showed beneath the blind covering the half-shutter.
• Ch. 21 – They are slender young gentlemen, clad either in hunting costumes or in Court cloaks that look lighter than a cicada’s wings, loose trousers, and unlined robes of raw silk.
• Ch. 21 – One will find them there even on hot summer days, decked out in bright linen robes, with loose trousers of light violet or bluish grey spread about them. Sometimes they will have taboo tags attached to their black lacquered head dresses.
• Ch. 23 – With the exception of the Ministers of the Left and the Right, [95] all the High Court Nobles were present. They wore laced trousers and Court cloaks lined with violet, through which one could make out the light yellow of their linen robes. Those gentlemen who had lately reached adult age were attired in white trouser-skirts and laced trousers of bluish grey, which gave an impression of coolness.
• Ch. 23 – Towards noon the Middle Captain of the Third Rank (as the Chancellor, Michitaka, was then styled) arrived at Smaller Shirakawa. Over a thin silk robe of dark orange he wore a dazzling white one of glossy silk; his Court cloak was lined with violet, and his laced trousers were the same colour, while his trouser skirt was of deep red material. […]His fan, with its slender, lacquered frame, was slightly different from the others, but it was covered with red paper of the same tint.
• Ch. 23 – The summer robes of most of the men were dyed in magnificent shades, and together they shone with such dazzling lustre that it was hard to single out any particular colour as being the most distinctive. Yoshichika’s linen robe was so discreet that one might have thought it was an ordinary Court cloak.
• Ch. 23 – The lady had worn a set of dark purple robes 1971 over a violet garb of figured material; above it all was a thin cloak of dark red; her formal skirt with its printed pattern had been allowed to spread so that its train hung over the back of the carriage.
• Ch. 24 – She is covered up to her head with a light mauve robe that has a lining of dark violet; the colour of both the outside and the lining is fresh and glossy. 11011 The woman, who appears to be asleep, wears an unlined orange robe and a dark crimson skirt of stiff silk whose cords hang loosely by her side, as if they have been left untied.
• Ch. 24 – He is wearing loose violet trousers, an orange hunting costume, so lightly coloured that one can hardly tell whether it has been dyed or not, a white robe of stiff silk, and a scarlet robe of glossy, beaten silk. His clothes, which are damp from the mist, hang loosely about him. From the dishevelment of his side locks one can tell how negligently he must have tucked his hair into his black lacquered head-dress when he got up.
• Ch. 25 – Thin white robes over a yellowish green costume.
• Ch. 27 – Of the trees that grow far away in the hills the so-called white oak is the least familiar; in fact about the only time one sees even its leaves is when they are being used to dye the robes worn by gentlemen of the second or third ranks.
• Ch. 29 – A white coat worn over a violet waistcoat.
• Ch. 32 – A woman with ugly hair wearing a robe of white damask.
• Ch. 32 – A woman of the lower classes dressed in a scarlet trouser-skirt.
• Ch. 32 – It is most unseemly for an Assistant Captain of the Quiver Bearers to make his night patrol in a hunting costume. And, if he wanders outside the woman’s quarters, ostentatiously clad in his terrifying red cloak, people will be sure to look down on him.
• Ch. 35 – Towards the end of the Third Month it becomes too warm for winter cloaks, and often Chamberlains who are on night watch in the Senior Courtiers’ Chamber wear only the over-robes of their Court costumes, leaving off their trouser-skirts and trains.
• Ch. 38 – Some people choose slender young men who look as if they were really made to be after-runners, but then let them wear threadbare hunting costumes and trouser-skirts that are dark at the hems and actually seem to be of shaded material.
• Ch. 48 – The men who glimpse this sight from the veranda, whether they be young noblemen with their over-robes informally left unsewn in the back, or Chamberlains of the Sixth Rank in their costumes of green, do not as a rule dare enter the room where the woman is seated.
• Ch. 48 – Charming also, when one is watching from the outside, is the sight of a young man clad in laced trousers of dark purple and in a dazzling Court robe over an array of varicoloured garments, as he leans forward into the woman’s room, pushing aside the green blind.
• Ch. 52 – His resplendent, cherry-coloured Court cloak was lined with material of the most delightful hue and lustre; he wore dark, grape-coloured trousers, boldly splashed with designs of wisteria branches; his crimson nder-robe was so glossy that it seemed to sparkle, while underneath one could make out layer upon layer of white and light violet robes.
• Ch. 52 – Mourning clothes being of such a light grey hue that they hardly seemed to have any color at all and one could not tell one garment from another. 
• Ch. 52 – Since Her Majesty was away, I was wearing an ordinary long robe without a formal skirt and train.
• Ch. 56 – Some of the Court gentlemen changed from their formal over-robes into hunting costume and remained in attendance at the Empress’s Office.
• Ch. 56 – Sleeve of his night watch costume, which was as green as a citron leaf.
• Ch. 56 – The messenger was rewarded with an unlined costume of white material and another of dark red that looked like plum blossom.
• Ch. 56 – It turned out to be an old nun dressed in a filthy cotton trouser-skirt which was so short and narrow that it seemed more like a sort of tube than an article of clothing. Over this she wore something equally dirty which was presumably meant to be a robe but which came only about five inches below her sash.
• Ch. 57 – Despite his low station a Chamberlain of the Sixth Rank is a splendid thing. To think that he is allowed yellowish-green robes of figured material and cloth that even young noblemen of the finest families are forbidden to wear! 
• Ch. 57 – What makes the costume of Sixth Rank Chamberlains so attractive when they are on night duty is the purple trousers.
• Ch. 59 – There sat the Empress, holding her lute lengthwise. She wore a magnificent scarlet robe, and beneath it several layers of beaten and stretched silk.
• Ch. 70 – Now the Empress’s hair had been dressed, and she was ready to be robed. Over a three-layered scarlet dress of beaten silk she wore two plum-red robes, one of heavily embroidered material and the other more lightly worked. “Tell me,” she said. “Do you think the plum red really goes with dark scarlet? I know this isn’t the season for plum red, but I can’t stand colours like light Green.”
• Ch. 70 – Her Highness, the Chancellor’s wife, wore a white robe over two dresses of scarlet silk, and a formal skirt with a long train.
• Ch. 70 -The Shigei Sha, who had moved back a little, was now facing in my direction. She had on several plum-red under-robes of different shades, an unlined costume of deep red damask, a long, flowing robe of darkish red, and an over-robe of richly embroidered light green silk which made her look very young. She held her fan steadily in front of her face. Altogether she was magnificent.
• Ch. 70 – His Excellency, the Chancellor, wore a light violet Court cloak, laced trousers of light green material, and a scarlet under robe. He faced towards us, leaning against one of the pillars between the main part of the hall and the veranda and fastening the cord round the neckband of his cloak in a loose knot.
• Ch.70 – The young attendants were very pretty in their loose, cherry coloured coats, under-skirts of light green and plum red, and long trains; I enjoyed watching them take the basin of water from the servants and place it next to the Shigei Sha.
• Ch. 70 – Also in attendance were Lady Shosho, the daughter of Sukemasa (Director of the Bureau of Imperial Stables), and Lady Saisho, the daughter of the Gentleman of Kitano of the Third Rank; they were seated next to the Empress, and the embroidered silk of their Chinese jackets emerged charmingly from beneath the curtain of state.
• Ch. 70 – The Palace Girls who were helping the Shigei Sha with her ablutions wore divided skirts of green and shaded material, Chinese jackets, waistband ribbons, and shoulder sashes; their faces were heavily powdered.
• Ch. 70 – As a gift for the messenger the Empress produced a formal, wide-sleeved robe of light green material together with a trouser-skirt.
• Ch. 70 – He was resplendent in his cherry-blossom Court cloak and his crimson robe which reflected the light of the evening glow – but His Majesty is such an awe-inspiring figure that I cannot continue writing about him like this.
• Ch. 77 – They were accompanied by a very proper-looking attendant, who held an attractively decorated bag of provisions. Their page-boys, who carried flowering branches of cherry blossom, wore hunting costumes of plum red and bright green, with varicoloured under-robes and skirts printed with scattered patches of colour.
• Ch. 77 – I also remember a pleasant-looking young gentleman, evidently from a good family, who did not stay in his cell at night and performed all his devotions during the daytime. He was attractively dressed in wide, bluish-grey trousers and many layers of white robes.
• Ch. 94 – They wore Chinese jackets of tawny yellow, light violet skirts, and robes of purple and dark red.
• Ch. 95 – A slender youth, with beautiful hair and wearing a torn hunting costume, had climbed the tree. At the foot stood a little boy; he had on short clogs, and over a plum-red under-robe he wore a white hunting costume tucked up so that it bulged at the waist. “Come on!” he called to the youth in the tree. “Cut me a nice, branch.”
• Ch. 99 – An extremely plump baby, who is about a year old and has a lovely white skin, comes crawling towards one, dressed in a long gauze robe of violet with the sleeves tucked up.
• Ch. 101 – The seams of a fur robe that has not yet been lined. Darkness in a place that does not give the impression of being very clean.
• Ch. 105 – I stayed at the bottom and looked up at them. As they stood there in their light grey skirts, Chinese jackets, matching dresses of unlined silk, and scarlet petticoats, they really looked as if they might have descended from heaven (though one could hardly have called them angels).
• Ch. 116 – It turned out that it was not Michitaka, but his son, Korechika, the Major Counsellor. The purple of his Court cloak and trousers looked magnificent against the white snow.
• Ch. 116 – This was the sort of exchange that is so eloquently described in romances; and the Empress herself, arrayed in a white dress, a robe of white Chinese damask, and two more layers of scarlet damask over which her hair hung down loosely at the back, had a beauty that I had seen in paintings but never in real life: it was all like a dream.
• Ch. 119 – Over a dress of dull purple she wore an unlined robe of tawny cloth and a formal robe of some light material. 
• Ch. 119 – She wore a night-dress of light violet and over that a faded blue robe of stiff silk, which was badly coming apart at the seams and wet from the rain. Her hair, which was cut evenly at the ends like miscanthus in a field, reached all the way down to her feet, falling onto the veranda beyond the bottom of her robe. Looking at her from the side, I could make out the scarlet of her trouser-skirt, the only bright touch in her costume.
• Ch. 121 – On one cold, overcast day the snow began to come down in scattered flakes, falling on the blue and white robes of the people in the procession and on the flowers that they wore in their head-dress.  I found the sight immensely delightful. The sheaths of the dancers’ swords shone magnificently, and the cords of their jackets, which hung over the sheaths, were so bright that they might have been polished. Beneath the printed material of their trouser-skirts I could see the brilliant, glossy silk of their under-robes, and for a moment I wondered whether they were made of ice.
• Ch. 121 – While we were still watching the dancers, the musicians appeared, wearing willow coloured robes and yellow roses in their head-dress.
• Ch. 121 – On the previous day I had noticed several of these young noblemen crowded together in a carriage. They had taken down the blinds, and I could see that they were messily dressed in hunting costumes and violet cloaks; altogether they had made a very bizarre impression. Today these same young men were beautifully attired in full Court costume and ready to take part in the High Priestess’s banquet
• Ch. 121 – the High Priestess and her retinue soon arrived from the Upper Shrine. First we could see the fans come into sight, then the yellow-green robes of the gentlemen from the Emperor’s Private Office. It was a splendid sight. The men wore their under-robes in such a way that the white material stood out against the yellowish-green of their outer robes, and I was reminded so much of white u no hana blossoms in a green hedge that I almost expected to find a hototogisu lurking there.
• Ch. 139 – One day, when the snow lay thick on the ground and was still coming down heavily, I saw some gentlemen of the Fourth and Fifth Ranks who had a fresh complexion and a pleasant, youthful look. Their beautifully coloured Court robes, which they wore over their night-watch costumes, were tucked up at the bottom and showed the marks of their leather belts. Their dark purple trousers stood out beautifully against the white snow. I could also see their under-jackets, some of scarlet, others dyed a beautiful rose-yellow. The men had opened their umbrellas, but since it was very windy the snow came at them from the side and they bent forward slightly as they walked. The sparkling white snow covered them all the way to the tips of their lacquered leather shoes or short clogs – a magnificent sight.
• Ch. 142 – In the Sixth Month the young Chamberlain, elegantly attired in over-trousers of silk damask, a glossy white under-robe lined, with dark red, and a short-sleeved black jacket, was among the crowd of people who attended a recitation of the Eight Lessons.
• Ch. 149 – My reward for the messenger, a general maid from the Table Room, was an unlined green costume.
• Ch. 150 – In the morning His Excellency, the Chancellor, arrived to call on the Empress. He was wearing bluish-grey trousers of heavily figured silk and a cherry-blossom cloak, over three scarlet robes.
• Ch. 150 – The Empress and the other ladies were dressed in the most splendid costumes made of glossy, plum-blossom material, some with heavily figured designs, others decorated with embroidery. On top they wore Chinese jackets of light green, willow green, or red plum-blossom.
• Ch. 150 – In the remaining ten carriages sat ladies-in-waiting, elegantly dressed in Chinese jackets of cherry-blossom material, skirts of scarlet or occasionally light violet, and coats of stiff silk. Though there was a bright sun, the sky was covered with mist, giving a pale green effect.
• Ch. 150 – Matsugimi, who had accompanied his father, was brought to see us. He wore a grape-coloured Court cloak, a dark violet robe of beaten damask, and a jacket of plum-red material.
• Ch. 150 – Finally eight Palace Girls were led up on horseback, wearing blue formal skirts shaded darker towards the edges, waistband ribbons, and shoulder sashes, which all fluttered attractively in the breeze. One of the girls called Buzen was on intimate terms with Shigemasa, the doctor. Noticing that she had on a pair of grape-coloured trousers, Yamanoi, the Major Counsellor, laughed and said, “So they have allowed Shigemasa to wear the forbidden colour?”
• Ch. 150 – When the Chancellor noticed that my Chinese jacket was made of red silk with five patterns embroidered in cherry-coloured thread, he laughed and said, “We’ve suddenly found ourselves short of a red robe for one of the priests.
• Ch. 150 – Bishop Ryuen wore a robe of thin, red material, a purple stole, a light mauve jacket, and a pair of loose trousers. The bluish tint of his shaved head made him look very attractive, and one could easily have taken him for the Bodhisattva Jizo.
• Ch. 150 – She had not changed her clothes since I saw her before and was still wearing the same Chinese jacket; but she was dazzlingly beautiful. Where else would one ever see a red Chinese robe like this? Beneath it she wore a willow-green robe of Chinese damask, five layers of unlined robes of grape-coloured silk, a robe of Chinese gauze with blue prints over a plain white background, and a ceremonial skirt of elephant-eye silk. I felt that nothing in the world could compare with the beauty of these colors.
• Ch. 152 – It is very pleasant, too, when one is staying in a place where one can receive a visitor openly and he arrives in clothes that are cold and damp from the snow. He may be wearing a hunting costume, an over-robe, the yellow-green robes of a Chamberlain, or, best of all, a proper Court cloak; but, even if he is dressed in a short green robe, I am quite content so long as it has been moistened by the snow.
• Ch. 152 – In the old days Chamberlains always used to wear their yellow green robes when visiting women at night, and if they had got wet in the rain they would wring them out. But nowadays they all seem to wear their short green robes, even for daytime visits. How handsome the Chamberlains looked when they came dressed in yellow-green, especially those who were also serving as Guards officers!
• Ch. 161 – I could see a lady who was covered in about eight layers of light violet, red plum, white, and other robes; over this she wore a cloak of dark violet, which shone with a brilliant lustre. Next to her sat a gentleman in laced trousers of grape-coloured material with a heavily figured design; he wore several white robes, and at the opening of his sleeves one could see the yellow rose and scarlet of his under-robes; he had undone the dazzlingly white sash of his Court cloak, which he wore off one shoulder so that one had a clear view of the robes beneath.
• Ch. 171 – On another occasion I saw a girl in an unlined robe of soft white material, an attractive trouser-skirt, and a bright aster cloak.
• Ch. 177 – It is a plain unlined robe of pure white, and over it he wears a cloak of rose-yellow or crimson.
• Ch. 177 – Presently he performs his ablutions and changes into a white Court cloak, which he wears without any trousers. Thus attired, he starts reciting the sixth scroll of the Lotus Sutra from memory.
• Ch. 179 – The curtains themselves give a lovely cool impression; when one pushes them, they glide smoothly back, opening far wider than one expected and revealing the lady of the house, who under the faded dark robe she is using as her bedclothing wears a white unlined gown of raw silk and a crimson trouser-skirt.
• Ch. 181 – A handsome young gentleman is riding along on horseback, beautifully dressed in a Court cloak, over-robe, and hunting costume, with the full array of his varicoloured under-robes emerging at the opening of his sleeves.
• Ch. 182 – She was wearing an unlined robe of stiff silk and long, light-coloured trousers.
• Ch. 183 – Boys who wear high clogs with their trouser-skirts. I realize that this is the modern fashion, but I still don’t like it.

Analysis

Notes on Men’s Costumes

Garment Names

• Court Cloak – Noushi/Hou
• Under Robe – most commonly probably some sort of hitoe or kosode
• Trousers – Hakama
• Laced Trousers – Sashinuki. A kind of long hakama with lacing around the hem to allow it to be drawn in around the ankle or just below the knee (styles vary.)
• Hunting Costume – probably an entire outfit called the karisouzoku sugata
• Black Lacquered Headdress – Kanmuri
• Black Lacquered Cap – Eboushi
• Trains – Shitagasane
• Trouser Skirts – Ue no Hakama?
• Lacquered Leather Shoes – A kind of Asagutsu made from shaped and lacquered leather.
• Short Clogs – Likely Asagutsu made from wood and lacquered.
• Tall Clogs – These are probably either a thicker soled wooden shoe, or perhaps geta clog sandals.

Observations

• In Chapter 21, a reference is made to “bright linen robes,” implying that there are other materials used for even overwear other than just silk. Where this says “linen” may mean ramie, but in any event it is some kind of bast fiber.
• In Chapter 21, “black lacquered headdresses” are mentioned. These are likely to be kanmuri because they talk about having “taboo tags” attached.
• In Chapter 23, it is noted that some linen layers are visible under court cloaks (which would be made of silk.) So there are times when even mixed garments are appropriate.

• Chapter 23 mentions a fan with a lacquered frame (ribs) and red paper. So it appears that there are not only hiougi slatted fans in use at this time, but also sensu style folding paper fans.
• In Chapter 23, somebody is wearing a linen overgarment, presumably either a hou or suikan. It is very likely some sort of agekubi garment because it is described as being very similar to a regular court cloak.
• Chapter 27 tells us that Oak Leaves are used to dye the robes of high ranking men, so the black for those robes is probably an iron/tannin black.
• Chapter 48 tells us that Sixth Rank courtiers wear Green. This is one of the few references in the book to the required colors of over robes in formal wear for men during this period.
• In Chapter 77 a person is described as wearing “many layers of white robes.” While many people are familiar with the concept of color layering in women’s clothing, color layering effects in men’s clothing seems less commonly discussed.
• Chapter 101 overtly references a fur robe. While this might be talking about the deerskin chaps that go with a hunting costume, it seems more likely that there is some idea in the Heian court of a robe that has fur on the outside.

Notes on Women’s Costumes

Garment Names

• Chinese Jackets – karaginu
• Waistcoat – ???
• Shoulder Sashes – Tasuki shoulder ties. These are often used to tie back sleeves when a person needs to use their hands.
• Robe – hitoe style robes
• Dress – probably a kosode meant to be an inner (although still visible) layer.
• Trouser-Skirt: Women’s red hakama

Observations

• A robe in Chapter 23 is made of “figured material” and is likely a brocade. The skirt that goes with it has a printed pattern. The outfit also includes a “cloak” which is probably some kind of uwagi, or hitoe.
• In Chapter 56, perhaps the dirty nun’s “trouser skirt” is a mobakama?
• Chapter 70: Even the Empress can wear off season colors. This shows us that while there are specific clothing color combinations, these are not set in stone and the wearer can make personalized changes to them, although presumably those changes would reflect on the wearer’s taste or lack thereof.

General Observations

• In Chapter 46 (and 149 for a maid) we see that messengers going to and fro in the palace are rewarded with entire robes.
• Chapter 77 talks about “Skirts printed with scattered patches of color.” These are probably referring to trains and the decoration might be a kind of surizome (dyeing applied by rubbing a brush over a spot) with fuzzy edged blobs of colors on a light (white) ground. Alternatelym some dip dye spot dyeing can get a similar effect.
• Chapter 139 says that a group of men opened their umbrellas. The majority of depictions of umbrellas from before the Edo period show an attendant holding an extra long handled umbrella over a person, but this passage seems to say that each person here carried their own umbrella (and that it probably had a shorter handle.)
• The following cloth decoration techniques are explicitly mentioned:
  • Brocade
  • Damask
  • Printing
  • Very light dyeing
  • Beaten silk
  • Dyeing with Oak Leaves
  • Shaded Fabric
  • Embroidery
  • Surizome or Dip Dyeing

Colors Mentioned in The Pillow Book

The colors of clothing as described in The Pillow Book helps to illustrate the world of the Heian Aristocracy by pointing out the ranges and styles of colors worn by both men and women. While many modern depictions of courtly nobles show women in wonderful layered brocades, they also show men in fairly conservative court costumes, which is not an incorrect way of depicting them, per se. The official costumes of masculine courtiers included a set of prescribed colors for the main over-robe, determined by the wearer’s rank, but at times other than these, there is just as much space for the fashionable man to express themselves through garment color choices as there is for women.

The following lists attempt to give an idea of the sorts of colors which were available to the aristocracy during this time in history. This list does not, however, give a listing of color combinations in outfits or show which colors are used in which garments. The reader is encouraged to refer back to the main excerpts above to find that information.

Colors Mentioned in Relation to Men’s Clothing

These colors are used to describe men’s clothing throughout the Pillow Book. Many of them are mentioned multiple times. The number which follows a color name is the number of times the color is brought up in the above selections.

It is presumed that not all of the colors named here are distinct. While the dyeing expertise of Heian craftspeople was extraordinary, the fact that this list is filtered through a poetic author and then a translator creates a high probability that some colors with different names refer to the same color (or color layering effect, as is common in Heian court fashion.) Frustratingly, we also know that colors that would seem to be very similarly named are in fact considered different colors to the technical expertise of the deft court fashionista. E.g.: Violet, Purple, and Grape, as well as Violet, Light Violet, and Dark Violet. Furthermore, the conceptualization of color spectra is different in Heian Era Japan compared to our modern Western Color Wheel. The word Aoi (青い) presents a particular problem, for example, because while it does mean blue, it can also mean bluish-green, or a fresh, young, springy green sort of color. As this list pulls only from an already English translated version of the text, it is difficult to get a perfect read on where such a term may have been used. Still, the hope is to provide a general overview of the sorts of colors in use by Heian aristocracy as portrayed in the Pillow Book.

Neutral Tones

• White (15)
• Light Grey (1)
• Black (1)

Reds (and pinks)

• Cherry/Sakura (6)
• Red (3)
• Dark Red (3)
• Scarlet (5)
• Crimson (3)
• Plum Blossom (1)
• Plum Red (3)

Oranges

• Orange (1)
• Dark Orange (1)

Yellows

• Light Yellow (1)
• Rose Yellow (3)

Greens

• Yellowish- Green (5)
• Willow (1)
• Light Green (2)
• Bright Green (1)
• Green (4)
• Green as a Citron Leaf (1)

Blues

• Bluish-Grey (4)

Purples

• Dark Violet (1)
• Light Violet (2)
• Violet (5)
• Light Mauve (1)
• Grape (2)
• Dark Grape (1)
• Purple (3)
• Dark Purple (3)

Colors Mentioned in Relation to Women’s Clothing

These colors are used to describe Women’s clothing throughout the Pillow Book. Many of them are mentioned multiple times. The number which follows a color name is the number of times the color is brought up in the above selections.

As above, it is presumed that there are some variations in color naming conventions throughout the book.

Neutral Tones

• White (9)
• Light Grey (1)
• Tawny (1)

Reds (and Pinks)

• Cherry/Sakura (4)
• Plum Blossom (2)
• Plum Red (4)
• Scarlet (7)
• Red (2)
• Deep Red (1)
• Dark Red (3)
• Crimson (1)
• Dark Crimson (1)

Oranges

• Orange (1)

Yellows

• Yellow (1)
• Golden Yellow (1)
• Tawny Yellow (1)

Blues

• Blue (1)

Greens

• Willow Green (2)
• Light Green (4)
• Green (1)

Purples

• Wisteria (1)
• Aster (1)
• Light Violet (4)
• Violet (2)
• Dark Violet (1)
• Mauve (1)
• Dull Purple (1)
• Purple (1)
• Dark Purple(1)
• Grape Colored (1)