Okimono
Encyclopedia
Okimono is a Japanese term meaning "ornament for display; objet d'art; decorative object", typically displayed in a tokonoma
"alcove" or butsudan
"Buddhist altar".
The Japanese word okimono compounds oku 置く "put; place; set; lay out; assign; station; leave" and mono 物 "thing; object; article". The Oxford English Dictionary
defines the loanword
okimono, "A standing ornament or figure, esp. one put in a guest room of a house", and records the first usage in 1886 by William Anderson
.
An okimono may be a small Japan
ese carving, similar to, but larger than netsuke
. Unlike netsuke, which had a specific purpose, okimono were purely decorative and were displayed in the tokonoma
. During the Meiji period
many okimono were made for export to the west
.
Tokonoma
Tokonoma , also referred to simply as toko, is a Japanese term generally referring to a built-in recessed space in a Japanese style reception room, in which items for artistic appreciation are displayed. In English, tokonoma is usually called alcove. The items usually displayed in a tokonoma are...
"alcove" or butsudan
Butsudan
A butsudan is a shrine commonly found in temples and homes in Japanese Buddhist cultures. A butsudan is a wooden cabinet with doors that enclose and protect a gohonzon or religious icon, typically a statue or painting of a Buddha or Bodhisattva, or a "script" mandala scroll...
"Buddhist altar".
The Japanese word okimono compounds oku 置く "put; place; set; lay out; assign; station; leave" and mono 物 "thing; object; article". The Oxford English Dictionary
Oxford English Dictionary
The Oxford English Dictionary , published by the Oxford University Press, is the self-styled premier dictionary of the English language. Two fully bound print editions of the OED have been published under its current name, in 1928 and 1989. The first edition was published in twelve volumes , and...
defines the loanword
Loanword
A loanword is a word borrowed from a donor language and incorporated into a recipient language. By contrast, a calque or loan translation is a related concept where the meaning or idiom is borrowed rather than the lexical item itself. The word loanword is itself a calque of the German Lehnwort,...
okimono, "A standing ornament or figure, esp. one put in a guest room of a house", and records the first usage in 1886 by William Anderson
William Anderson (collector)
William Anderson FRCS was an Engish surgeon born in Shoreditch, London. He was Professor of Anatomy at the Royal Academy in London, and an important collector and scholar of Japanese art. He was the first chairman of the Japan Society...
.
An okimono may be a small Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese carving, similar to, but larger than netsuke
Netsuke
Netsuke are miniature sculptures that were invented in 17th-century Japan to serve a practical function...
. Unlike netsuke, which had a specific purpose, okimono were purely decorative and were displayed in the tokonoma
Tokonoma
Tokonoma , also referred to simply as toko, is a Japanese term generally referring to a built-in recessed space in a Japanese style reception room, in which items for artistic appreciation are displayed. In English, tokonoma is usually called alcove. The items usually displayed in a tokonoma are...
. During the Meiji period
Meiji period
The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
many okimono were made for export to the west
Western world
The Western world, also known as the West and the Occident , is a term referring to the countries of Western Europe , the countries of the Americas, as well all countries of Northern and Central Europe, Australia and New Zealand...
.