Latest Insights & In-Depth Reports · Page 26

How Did Japanese Family Crests, Imitating Chinese Tang Patterns, Evolve Independently in East Asia into an Identity Symbol Exclusive to Warrior Families?
Design Thinking·

How Did Japanese Family Crests, Imitating Chinese Tang Patterns, Evolve Independently in East Asia into an Identity Symbol Exclusive to Warrior Families?

On the battlefields of Japan's Sengoku period, when two armies faced off, soldiers often did not rely on writing to tell friend from foe, but on the family crests on banners and armor — patterns like the three-leaf hollyhock, six coins, and quince crest gleaming through the dust, becoming the most direct language of identity. These visual symbols, now regarded as emblems of Japanese culture, actually originated in the official-rank costume system of China's Tang dynasty. Japan's 18th-century Teijō Zakki records that "the matter of crests was modeled on the Tang system with additions and omissions"...