Legend has it that in the reign of Emperor Tenji (626-672), Japan’s 38th emperor, the discovery of a dead bat with burnt wings inspired a Japanese craftsman to make a prototype that was in fact the world’s first functioning folding fan.
Still it is hard to pinpoint exactly when these early wooden folding fans were developed and then upgraded into the beautiful folding paper fans Japan is now famous for.
That said, archaeologists have found inscribed fan-shaped wooden strips, known as mokkan, in Japan dating back to as early as 747. Mokkan were used for record keeping and are considered to be Japan’s first portable ‘memory-sticks’.
Over time, through upgrades and enhancements mokkan morphed into exceedingly sophisticated Ogi, folding paper fans, highly fashionable handheld canvases that displayed art and poetry, as well as delightful and entertaining prose.
Japanese folding paper fans, which have been described as portable handheld museums as well as reading devices, allowed their proud owners to project sophistication, taste and wealth at a flick of the wrist, at home or on the go.
And Japan’s literati loved them as they allowed them to display, read and share short form writing, mostly poetry, at will.
