Articles
The Portrayal of Work in Early Medieval Illustrated Scrolls
The Portrayal of Work in Early Medieval Illustrated Scrolls
Abstract
This article examines the emergence of a groundbreaking iconography of craft, technology, and community in illustrated scrolls (emaki) produced in early medieval Japan (1185–1333). These narratives and illustrations offer exceptionally detailed accounts of carpentry, forestry, transport, and communal life associated with the construction of elite religious institutions. Some focus on the initial building of architectural structures for Taima and Ishiyama temples, as well as Kasuga and Matsuzaki shrines, between the seventh and tenth centuries. Others depict the reconstruction of the Imperial Palace and Tōdaiji following devastating fires, the construction of a ship for travel between China and Japan, or of a wooden edge for a miraculous water well. Employing diverse disciplinary approaches—including demography, epidemiology, experimental archaeology, religious studies, art history, and close reading—this article uncovers the iconographic, technological, and ideological forces that shaped these portrayals. It situates the scrolls within broader transcontinental visual traditions, positioning them as the earliest representations of construction in East Asia. Finally, it argues for their emergence at the close of a period defined by the construction of a new center of power, the reconstruction of war- and fire-damaged structures, and material and labor scarcities driven by deforestation, famine, and violence.