67234


Across quite a few Japanese works, I have noticed black ribbons/bows hung over
a deceased person's portrait (shown in the photo below). But why are they
there? What do they symbolise? Are they commonplace? Are they exclusive to
just one region of Japan? And are they exclusive to Japan in general, or can
they be seen in other countries? What is this practice called? From when do
they originate?

(Spoilers for the very first death of Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc. This
was the best example of these ribbons I could find as to only include minor
spoilers. If anybody has a better picture, please comment it below.)

> ![The image is a screenshot from the first chapter of Danganronpa: Trigger
> Happy Havoc. It shows a framed portrait of the deceased Sayaka Maizono, with
> a red 'x' covering her face, and a black ribbon tied in to a bow at the
> top.](https://i.stack.imgur.com/3HFvE.png)


CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-09-02T12:19:52.360
67231
2022-09-28T18:04:30.827
question
culture
Why is a black ribbon hung over a person's portrait when they die?


The portraits are called iei, 遺影. The black (and white) ribbons are badges of
mourning called moshou, 喪章. They are typically worn along the chest (or as a
band around the arm) to express mourning of the deceased. They are typically
removed from the portrait after the funeral.

The tradition [likely originated](https://shukatsu-
mikata.jp/news/sougi/shadow-ribbon) from around the Meiji era, particularly
during the Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese wars. Soldiers prepared
photographs before going to war as they expected to die. If they did die,
their fellow comrades took off their mourning badges at the funeral, and hung
them on the portrait as a farewell to the deceased.


CC BY-SA 4.0
2022-09-02T18:28:53.730
67234
2022-09-28T18:04:30.827
2022-09-28T18:04:30.827
63
67231
answer