Shakōkidogū: Difference between revisions
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==Artifact== | ==Artifact== | ||
Shakōki dogū were only produced in the final period of the Jōmon era, from approximately 1,000 to 300 B.C.<ref name="torso"/> They are most commonly recovered from multipurpose sites with storage, dwellings, and burials, and most of the figures are found discarded in refuse.<ref name="conf"/> For | Shakōki dogū were only produced in the final period of the Jōmon era, from approximately 1,000 to 300 B.C.<ref name="torso"/> They are most commonly recovered from multipurpose sites with storage, dwellings, and burials, and most of the figures are found discarded in refuse.<ref name="conf"/> Many figures feature exaggerated hips and breasts, sometimes with swollen abdomens.<ref name="waisthip"/> For this reason, researchers believe that they are made to represent female forms and fertility,<ref name="waisthip"/> but religion in the Jōmon era was likely highly variable between regions and time periods, so it has also been suggested that interpreting all dogū in the context of fertility may be imprudent.<ref name="fertility">Naumann, N. (2000). Japanese Prehistory: The Material and Spiritual Culture of the Jōmon Period, 2000. Harrassowitz Verlag.</ref> | ||
==Context== | ==Context== | ||
There are a few other types of dogū that were produced in the same time period. These include the pregnant woman type, the heart shaped type, and the horned owl type. Each have distinct body characteristics. | The Jōmon people are believed to have been hunter-gatherers, though some evidence for small-scale plant cultivation exists.<ref name="huntergatherer">Habu, J. (2004). Ancient Jomon of Japan, 2004. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.</ref> | ||
At least 10,630 dogū were documented by 1991,<ref name="wasithip"/> but the shakōki dogū type is relatively rare.<ref name="conf"/> There are a few other types of dogū that were produced in the same era, though the types produced in each time period within the era were slightly different. These include the pregnant woman type, the heart shaped type, and the horned owl type. Each have distinct body characteristics. | |||
It is believed that the dogū had a personal ritual significance, as no evidence has been found of public ritual use.<ref name="conf">Pearson, R. (2004). New Perspectives on Jomon Society, Presented at the International Jomon Culture Conference, 2004.</ref> Figurines are often found broken with an arm or a leg commonly missing.<ref name="enigma">James, N. & Chippindale, J. (2010). Figurine enigmas: who's to know? ''Antiquity, 84''(326), 1172-1176.</ref> Because of the frequency with which they are discovered broken, it is believed that breaking the dogū may have been part of a ritual.<ref name="waisthip">Hudson, M.J. & Aoyama, M. (2007). Waist-to-hip ratios of Jomon figurines. ''Antiquity, 81''(314), 961-971.</ref> | It is believed that the dogū had a personal ritual significance, as no evidence has been found of public ritual use.<ref name="conf">Pearson, R. (2004). New Perspectives on Jomon Society, Presented at the International Jomon Culture Conference, 2004.</ref> Figurines are often found broken with an arm or a leg commonly missing.<ref name="enigma">James, N. & Chippindale, J. (2010). Figurine enigmas: who's to know? ''Antiquity, 84''(326), 1172-1176.</ref> Because of the frequency with which they are discovered broken, it is believed that breaking the dogū may have been part of a ritual.<ref name="waisthip">Hudson, M.J. & Aoyama, M. (2007). Waist-to-hip ratios of Jomon figurines. ''Antiquity, 81''(314), 961-971.</ref> | ||
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Additionally, most of von Däniken's argument stems from the head of the figurines bearing resemblance to a space helmet. However, it has been shown that the head is not the most important characteristic in human representation. In fact, the torso is the most important feature in representing a human, not the face.<ref name="torso">Sumioka, H., Koda, K., Nishio, S., Minato, T., & Ishiguro, H. (2013). Revisiting ancient design of human form for communication avatar: Design considerations from chronological development of Dogū. Presented at The 22nd IEEE International Symposium on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, Gyeongju, South Korea, 26-29 August 2013. IEEE.</ref> Early dogū do not have any facial features, but detailed torsos. As the Jōmon era progressed, arms, legs, and facial features were added to the figures.<ref name="torso"/> Therefore, because the head does not bear as much significance in the dogū, so artistic liberty could be taken with facial features. | Additionally, most of von Däniken's argument stems from the head of the figurines bearing resemblance to a space helmet. However, it has been shown that the head is not the most important characteristic in human representation. In fact, the torso is the most important feature in representing a human, not the face.<ref name="torso">Sumioka, H., Koda, K., Nishio, S., Minato, T., & Ishiguro, H. (2013). Revisiting ancient design of human form for communication avatar: Design considerations from chronological development of Dogū. Presented at The 22nd IEEE International Symposium on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, Gyeongju, South Korea, 26-29 August 2013. IEEE.</ref> Early dogū do not have any facial features, but detailed torsos. As the Jōmon era progressed, arms, legs, and facial features were added to the figures.<ref name="torso"/> Therefore, because the head does not bear as much significance in the dogū, so artistic liberty could be taken with facial features. | ||
The large eyes are interpreted in a modern sense as snow goggles, a stretched membrane applied to a frame.<ref name="ancientreligion">Maringer, J. (1974). Clay Figurines of the Jōmon Period: A Contribution to the History of Ancient Religion in Japan. ''History of Religions, 14''(2). 128-139.</ref> However, in the geographic region in which shakōki dogū are found, such goggles would probably not be needed. Instead, they might be interpreted simply as exaggerated eyes, with eyes being connected directly to the soul.<ref name="kidder">Kidder, J. (1957). The Jomon Pottery of Japan. ''Artibus Asiae. Supplementum, 17.''</ref> | |||
==References== | ==References== | ||
Revision as of 07:29, 1 December 2017
by Rachel Polus
The shakōki dogū are Japanese figurines dating back to the Jōmon era. Dogū are made of clay and range from 3 cm to 40 cm tall.[1] They were created in the Jōmon period, which spanned from approximately 11,000 to 400 B.C.[2] There are multiple types of dogū, but pseudoarchaeological beliefs center around the shakōki dogū, or "goggle eye" type.
Artifact
Shakōki dogū were only produced in the final period of the Jōmon era, from approximately 1,000 to 300 B.C.[3] They are most commonly recovered from multipurpose sites with storage, dwellings, and burials, and most of the figures are found discarded in refuse.[4] Many figures feature exaggerated hips and breasts, sometimes with swollen abdomens.[5] For this reason, researchers believe that they are made to represent female forms and fertility,[5] but religion in the Jōmon era was likely highly variable between regions and time periods, so it has also been suggested that interpreting all dogū in the context of fertility may be imprudent.[6]
Context
The Jōmon people are believed to have been hunter-gatherers, though some evidence for small-scale plant cultivation exists.[7]
At least 10,630 dogū were documented by 1991,[8] but the shakōki dogū type is relatively rare.[4] There are a few other types of dogū that were produced in the same era, though the types produced in each time period within the era were slightly different. These include the pregnant woman type, the heart shaped type, and the horned owl type. Each have distinct body characteristics.
It is believed that the dogū had a personal ritual significance, as no evidence has been found of public ritual use.[4] Figurines are often found broken with an arm or a leg commonly missing.[9] Because of the frequency with which they are discovered broken, it is believed that breaking the dogū may have been part of a ritual.[5]
Pseudoarchaeology
Pseudoarchaeological Narrative
Deconstruction
Von Daniken's response to the shakōki dogū demonstrates a key theme in much of his work: the principle of the inkblot test. In an inkblot, the viewer describes what they see in a pseudo-random pattern. Von Däniken is a major proponent of the belief in ancient aliens and their intervention in human history, so he is predisposed to see a space traveler in artifacts that have strong and well-understood contextual background. The shakōki dogū are not the only artifact that has been subjected to a similar treatment by von Däniken, but it provides an excellent illustration of the habit in the pseudoarchaeological community to take one type of artifact out of a series of similar artifacts, decontextualize said artifact, and use it to support the notion that early humans were visited by aliens or that early humans were capable of space travel.
Additionally, most of von Däniken's argument stems from the head of the figurines bearing resemblance to a space helmet. However, it has been shown that the head is not the most important characteristic in human representation. In fact, the torso is the most important feature in representing a human, not the face.[3] Early dogū do not have any facial features, but detailed torsos. As the Jōmon era progressed, arms, legs, and facial features were added to the figures.[3] Therefore, because the head does not bear as much significance in the dogū, so artistic liberty could be taken with facial features.
The large eyes are interpreted in a modern sense as snow goggles, a stretched membrane applied to a frame.[10] However, in the geographic region in which shakōki dogū are found, such goggles would probably not be needed. Instead, they might be interpreted simply as exaggerated eyes, with eyes being connected directly to the soul.[11]
References
- ↑ Kaner, S. & Bailey D. (2009) The power of dogu: Ceramic figures, from ancient japan, 2009. British Museum Press.
- ↑ Insoll, T. (2012). The new hakodate jomon culture center, minamikayabe, japan. Material Religion, 8(2), 262-264.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Sumioka, H., Koda, K., Nishio, S., Minato, T., & Ishiguro, H. (2013). Revisiting ancient design of human form for communication avatar: Design considerations from chronological development of Dogū. Presented at The 22nd IEEE International Symposium on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, Gyeongju, South Korea, 26-29 August 2013. IEEE.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Pearson, R. (2004). New Perspectives on Jomon Society, Presented at the International Jomon Culture Conference, 2004.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Hudson, M.J. & Aoyama, M. (2007). Waist-to-hip ratios of Jomon figurines. Antiquity, 81(314), 961-971.
- ↑ Naumann, N. (2000). Japanese Prehistory: The Material and Spiritual Culture of the Jōmon Period, 2000. Harrassowitz Verlag.
- ↑ Habu, J. (2004). Ancient Jomon of Japan, 2004. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- ↑ Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedwasithip - ↑ James, N. & Chippindale, J. (2010). Figurine enigmas: who's to know? Antiquity, 84(326), 1172-1176.
- ↑ Maringer, J. (1974). Clay Figurines of the Jōmon Period: A Contribution to the History of Ancient Religion in Japan. History of Religions, 14(2). 128-139.
- ↑ Kidder, J. (1957). The Jomon Pottery of Japan. Artibus Asiae. Supplementum, 17.