Miko Seeks Miko-Wear

August 1, 2006 10:53 AM

Can you tell me which Shinto shrine in Kyoto attires the miko in these white coats with cranes printed on them? Here's another image, and another.

It's possible they're not all from the same shrine. I'm interested only in the crane images, though.

Bonus points if you can find me a closer-up image of the crane, or a place to purchase the fabric.

This is one of those AskMe longshots, but I believe in the power.

posted by Miko to Society & Culture (10 answers total)

not for nothing, but the wikipedia article on miko has a picture with that exact print, saying they're from aso, which is pretty far from kyoto. it might not be specific to one shrine.
posted by sergeant sandwich at 11:56 AM on August 1, 2006

From the Flickr tags on the first photo, it looks like it's an Inari Shrine, and the most famous one in Kyoto is Fushimi-Inari, the one with all the red gates along the path.
So that might be it.
posted by exceptinsects at 12:03 PM on August 1, 2006

I'd have to agree with exceptinsects about it being Fushimi-Inari, as the first photo is labelled as a ceremony to Inari and that's the only major Inary shrine in or around Kyoto. However, I don't recall cranes having any symbolic relationship to Inari (the fox god), so I think the images on the Kimono are probably just decorative and might be found anywhere.
posted by njgo at 12:41 PM on August 1, 2006

Those are leads, definitely...I'll have to keep looking for links related to those shrines and see what I can find.

Could the crane be for a specific festival or ceremony? I had assumed it would be associated with a certain shrine, but maybe it's more associated with a holiday, or something?
posted by Miko at 1:03 PM on August 1, 2006

Here's a site with a lot of pictures of miko at many different shrines. Some of the pictures that contain the crane design are from Inari shrines, but others aren't.

I get the feeling that this pattern of chihaya is very common and not particular to any one shrine or type of shrine. You can even buy one on this site.[scroll down a bunch] I think it may also be a seasonal thing, or associated with a particular ceremony.
posted by robofunk at 1:11 PM on August 1, 2006

I've seen mikos wearing the same pattern at Kanda Myojin in Tokyo. It's not an Inari shine, but I do remember there being some kitsune statues tucked away in a secluded corner.

As far as I can remember, the place was always quiet when I visited... no special events or anything of the sort. It's one of my favorite shrines in Tokyo, so I made a habit of dropping by when I was in the neighborhood... which was fairly often.
posted by jal0021 at 4:31 PM on August 1, 2006

Work colleague says it is just a pattern on a Chihaya (style of kimono). They were under the impression it is just a pattern, and nothing denoting a particular shrine, or order.

http://www.himorogi.jp/denpa/miko/chihaya.html
posted by lundman at 10:05 PM on August 1, 2006

Thanks so much. It's been helpful having more images. I couldn't find the exact print for sale on robofunk's chihaya web site, but this is a good start!
posted by Miko at 12:46 PM on August 2, 2006

I believe that could be Imamiya Jinja over on the west side, and there's a big used kimono shop near there (name escapes me) that might have some castoffs. I'll poke around.
posted by planetkyoto at 10:14 AM on August 3, 2006

Thanks!
posted by Miko at 4:41 PM on August 7, 2006