繧繝

Japanese

Kanji in this term
繧	繝
うん Hyōgaiji	げん Hyōgaiji

Alternative spelling
暈繝

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [ɯ̟̃ᵝŋɡẽ̞ɴ]

Noun

繧(うん)繝(げん) • (ungen) 

1. a dyed pattern consisting of alternating light and dark bands of a single hue

   繧(うん)繝(げん)彩(さい)色(しき)

   ungen saishiki

   ungen coloration

   • 2011, Honda Eiji, Interia no rekishi [History of interior design], page 369:

     天(てん)皇(のう)は最(もっと)も貴(き)重(ちょう)な織(おり)物(もの)であった繧(うん)繝(げん)錦(にしき)を使(つか)った繧(うん)繝(げん)縁(べり)が用(もち)いられました。繧(うん)繝(げん)とは同(どう)色(しょく)系(けい)統(とう)の段(だん)層(そう)的(てき)な濃(のう)淡(たん)と他(ほか)の対(たい)照(しょう)的(てき)な色(しき)調(ちょう)の濃(のう)淡(たん)を組(く)み合(あ)わせて装(そう)飾(しょく)効(こう)果(か)を高(たか)めた当(とう)時(じ)の最(さい)高(こう)級(きゅう)織(おり)物(もの)です。

     Tennō wa mottomo kichō na orimono deatta ungen nishiki o tsukatta ungenberi ga mochīraremashita. Ungen to wa dōshoku keitō no dansōteki na nōtan to hoka no taishōteki na shikichō no nōtan o kumiawasete sōshoku kōka o takameta tōji no saikōkyū orimono desu.

     The Emperor used a brocade of the most precious ungen woven brocade. Ungen is a woven fabric consisting of alternating bands of lighter and darker shades of the same color with other contrasting tones, the highest order of visual ornamentation available at that time.

Usage notes

Banded ungen textiles originated in Tang-era China, and entered Japan during the Nara period.

References

• “繧繝彩色”, in ブリタニカ国際大百科事典 小項目事典 (Buritanika Kokusai Dai Hyakka Jiten: Shō Kōmoku Jiten, “Encyclopædia Britannica International: Micropædia”)‎^[1] (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Britannica Japan Co., Ltd., 2014