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The online magazine HIGHLIGHTING JAPAN

DECEMBER 2023

THE JAPANESE AND CRANES

The cover of this month

INDEX

  • Seven species of cranes are found in Japan today, including the rare red-crowned crane or Japanese crane with its graceful form and distinctive red crest at the top of its head. Cranes have been loved by the people of Japan since ancient times as birds associated with good luck, a view that still persists today. This issue of Highlighting Japan introduces readers to these birds with special meaning for the Japanese, cranes, from a range of perspectives: from the types of cranes that live in Japan and their habitats to kimono with crane designs, wagashi confections related to cranes, paintings of cranes, and more.

FEATURES

  • Interview with Hisai Atsuyo, an associate professor at Hokkaido University's Graduate School of Humanity and Human Sciences

  • We interviewed the staff of the Kushiro Crane Reserve about the ecology of red-crowned cranes and the reserve's activities

  • The popular Japanese folk tale "The Gratitude of the Crane" has been handed down through the ages. We interviewed the director of the Yuzuru no Sato Cultural Heritage Museum about the folk tale

  • We hear about the kimono with crane-designed pattern from an expert specializing in the study of kimonos

  • We introduce wagashi inspired by the crane, the history of traditional Japanese confectionery, and explore how to appreciate their flavors through a wagashi expert

  • In Japan, there has been a long-standing tradition of using mizuhiki, traditional Japanese paper cords used to wrap around gifts, envelopes, and other items. We introduce the crane-shaped mizuhiki, renowned for its good fortune in Japan

  • Introducing two representative paintings featuring cranes, a common theme in Japanese paintings since ancient times: a joint work by Hon'ami Koetsu and Tawaraya Sotatsu, along with one by Sesshu

  • Introducing the Children's Peace Monument, a statue of a young girl holding up a folded origami crane in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima City, the first city in the history of mankind to have an atomic bomb dropped on it

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