Hina and Japanese Dolls

According to the old lunar calendar, the third day of the third month is the date of the peach blossom festival. Families traditionally celebrate this occasion by displaying hina dolls, which symbolize their prayers for the health and fortune of their daughters.

The origins of this tradition are unclear, but records reveal it had become an annual event by the early Edo period (1603-1868). The "Edo Kanoko" guidebook, written during the Jokyo era (1684-88), mentions hina doll markets being opened at several locations within Edo (present-day Tokyo), including Nakabashi, Owarimachi, Ningyocho, and Kojimachi.

During the first half of the Edo period, the main type of hina were standing dolls made of paper. The seated type adorned in courtly attire emerged later in the mid-Edo period. Variations included:
- Muromachi-bina, with costume in the style of the Muromachi period (1392-1593);
- Kyoho-bina, representing an imperial couple in richly layered costume;
- Jirozaemon-bina, with round white faces (favored in mid-western Japan); and
- Kokin-bina, which were popular in Edo.

While today it has become standard to display one set of Dairi-bina (based on Kyoho-bina), pictorial sources show that displays of earlier times combined hina with other doll types, such as traditional Kyoto-style Gosho dolls as well as lesser-known regional varieties. Delicately crafted, these dolls show the affection and tastes of their makers as well as their owners, reflecting the Japanese people's characteristic love of miniature objects.