Mianguan

Benkan is a Crown worn by Emperors, Emperor of Japans and kings in the East Asian cultural sphere countries of East Asia.

Overview
Crown or 冕 is a type of crown originally from China, which was worn by Emperor to the rank of lord or above in China. In Japan, it has been used as a crown for emperors since ancient times, but the details of its origin are unknown. It is also used in Vietnam. and the monarchs of the Korean Peninsula also use crown.

Crown
The crown is a type of ceremonial crown in Japan, also known as the Emperor's ceremonial crown, and was once used together with Mianfu (imperial robes) in ceremonies such as accession to the throne and morning prayers. In Kojidan, it is said that "the crown at the time of the Imperial Festival is that of Emperor Ōjin" and that the crown of Emperor Ōjin was used at the Imperial Festival until the Heian and Kamakura periods, but it has not been handed down to the present.

Among the Shōsōin treasures, there is a crown worn by Emperor Shōmu that has been damaged and is called "Onkamuri Zanketsu". The crown does not retain its original form, but there are metal openwork pieces with phoenix, clouds and arabesque patterns, as well as pearls, coral and glass beads threaded through the crown.

The crown worn by Japanese emperors is often referred to as a "Tang-style crown", but it is actually quite different from the crown worn in China. The crown worn by the emperor in the Edo period consists of a metal frame placed on top of an openwork gilt-bronze base called the "heavenly crown", with forty-eight jewels hanging from the edge of the frame, twelve on each side.

The crown differs greatly from the Chinese crown in that there is a sun decoration protruding from the front of the crown. The sun is surrounded by rays of light and a three-legged Yatagarasu (golden crow) is carved into the sun, which is decorated with clouds. The top of the head is decorated with flaming jewels. The portrait of Emperor Go-Daigo shows a crown with a sun decoration on top of the crown.

The crown worn by Emperor Go-Daigo and his successors during the coronation ceremony is preserved in the Imperial Collection of the Kyoto Imperial Palace.

The crown was used until the coronation of Temple, but since Emperor Meiji, the crown has been replaced by a standing tail crown.

Hoko crown (female emperor)
The crown of a female emperor (empress) is called a Hoko. Whether it can be considered as a type of Benkan or a different type of crown is a matter of opinion.

The Hoko does not have a crown board or similar metal frame on top of the crown, and there is no hair hanging from the crown board. The other difference between the crown and the crown is the phoenix attached to the front of the crown. There are ornaments hanging from both ears and the beak of the phoenix, which are decorated with flowers. However, the top of the head is decorated with the same sun emblem as the crown and the same design of Yatagarasu and Zuiun. The Hoko is accompanied by a hairpin, a foreign object and a small bow.

後桜町天皇が1763年（宝暦13年）の即位式で用いた宝冠が御物として現存している.

1888年（明治21年）に女性へ授与する勲章として制定された宝冠章はこれにちなんだもので、その正章中央には宝冠の図があしらわれている.

Higata Tenkan (Emperor of the Childhood)
The crown of the infant emperor is called the Nikata Tenkan, and is said to have been separate, but the details are unknown. The crown used by Emperor Nakamikado at his coronation ceremony in 1710 (the 7th year of Hōei) has been handed down as a Gomotsu under the name of "Tamakagane". The shape of the crown is almost the same as that of the treasure crown, with a phoenix and sun decoration on the top of the crown. The shape of the crown is almost the same as that of the treasure crown, with a phoenix and sun decoration on the top of the crown. The shape of the sun crown is unknown due to the loss of the ancient ceremony, so a crown similar to the treasure crown may have been made.

Benkan (China)
In China, the Benkan is worn by the emperor and the court nobles and above. A rectangular wooden board called Benkan board is placed on top of the Benkan, with fulls hanging from the front and back of the Benkan board. The number of flags depends on the status of the emperor, and the Benkan of the emperor has 12 flags at the front and back, for a total of 24 flags. In addition, there is a large crown without fulls that is used by the emperor to worship heaven and earth.

冠側面から玉笄と呼ばれる簪を指し、底部には纓と呼ばれる組紐がつく. また冕板の中央には天河帯と呼ばれる赤帯がついた.

中国の冕冠は、古代から明代まで基本的な形状はほとんど変わらない. 『周礼』および『礼記』の「玉藻」などに詳細な規定が見られ、先秦(周)に用いられていたとされるが、秦の始皇帝はこれを廃止し(絵ではしばしば冕冠をかぶるが、後世の憶測であろう)、前漢でも使用されなかった. 後漢第二代皇帝の明帝が文献に基づき再興して以降、各王朝が祭祀および重要な儀礼に使用した. ただし根拠になる文献の記載および、その古注には相互矛盾があり、各王朝でたびたび改正がおこなわれた. 遺品は、明の万暦帝が着用した冕冠が定陵から出土しているが、前漢から隋の歴代皇帝を描いた閻立本『歴代帝王図巻』に描かれている冕冠とほぼ同じ形状である.

中国を支配した漢民族以外の王朝も多くは冕冠を取り入れた. (漢民族王朝の祭祀体系を取り入れなかった遼や、モンゴル色の強いとされる元も取り入れている)しかし、満州族が建てた清王朝からは冕冠は中国では用いられなくなった. 代わりに朝冠（ちょうかん、満州語：mahala）と呼ばれる満州族独特の冠が用いられるようになった. 冠は傘のような形状で、冠最上部には朝珠と呼ばれる特別製の真珠をちりばめた飾りが付いた.

構造

 * 延
 * 1) 天河帯
 * 帽巻
 * 旒
 * 充耳
 * 纓
 * 武
 * 玉笄

Related items
Since China is a crown-wearing culture, there were many crowns for different ranks, positions, and times.


 * 鳳冠 - 皇后が身に着けた冠（例：zh:凤冠 (定陵) - 定陵遺跡から出土した孝端顕皇后、孝靖太后の冠、各2）
 * 紫金冠 - 年若い王子や将軍が身に着けた冠
 * 委貌冠、通天冠（高山冠）、貂蟬冠、建華冠、梁冠、進賢冠、樊噲冠、卻敵冠、鶡冠、爵弁・・・など

冕冠（ベトナム）
ベトナムでも中国風の冕冠が使用されていた.

脚注
注釈出典

参考文献

 * 松平乘昌『図説宮中柳営の秘宝』 河出書房新社、2006年. ISBN 4-309-76081-3.
 * 『服周之冕』中華書局、2009年.

関連項目

 * 冠
 * 冠