History Of Bonsai Trees In Japan
History and origin of bonsai.
History of bonsai trees in japan. The trees which stood approximately one to two feet in height required two to twenty years. The art of bonsai was spread by buddhist monks who wished to bring the outdoors inside their temples. While the art of bonsai has long been associated with japan it actually originated first in china and then spread eastward to korea and then japan. The trees require two to twenty years of masterful cultivation to achieve the correct look.
The word bonsai is often used in english as an umbrella term for all miniature trees in containers or pots. When chinese monks began to migrate to japan the trees went with them. Similar practices exist in other cultures including the chinese tradition of penjing from which the art originated and the miniature living landscapes of vietnamese hòn non bộ. History of bonsai although the word bon sai is japanese the art it describes originated in the chinese empire.
By the year 700 ad the chinese had started the art of pun sai using special techniques to grow dwarf trees in containers. Also during this time under the rule of the hang dynasty chinese monks migrated to japan and. By the end of the 18th century bonsai cultivation in japan was becoming widespread and began to interest the general public. During the tokugawa shogunate 1603 1868 collecting a yamadori or natural dwarf tree from the mountains and containerizing it became part of the samurai tradition.
The earliest mention of tree cultivation in japan occurred about the year 970 and the earliest visual depiction of bonsai was in a scroll dating from the 12th or 13th century. This article focuses on the history of bonsai in japan. The term bonsai itself is a japanese pronunciation of the earlier chinese term penzai. The japanese became fascinated by them and began to develop their own techniques for growing and shaping the trees eventually renaming them bonsai trees.
By the year 700 ad the chinese had started the art of pun sai using special techniques to grow dwarf trees in containers. History of bonsai trees introduction to japan. The tree is thought to be at least 500 years old and was trained as a bonsai by at latest the year 1610. The earliest bonsai to come to the west came mostly from japan and china.
Although the word bon sai is japanese the art it describes originated in the chinese empire. The showing of bonsai at the third universal exhibition in paris in 1878 and later exhibitions in 1889 and 1900 increased western interest in bonsai and opened the door for the first major bonsai exhibit held in london in 1909. In the tenmei era 1781 88 an exhibit of traditional dwarf potted pines began to be held every year in kyoto. Originally only the elite of the society practiced pun tsai with native collected specimens and the trees where spread throughout china as luxurious gifts.