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[In alphabetical order]
Clyne, J., Searby, R., Leeds, M., Frappell, S. Cummins N., Cashman, L. & Meehan, M. (2012) History 8: The ancient and modern world. South Yarra, Victoria: Macmillan.

History of origami from past. (2016) Origami-resource-center.com. Retrieved 18 Sep. 2016

Origami - New World Encyclopedia. (2016). Newworldencyclopedia.org. Retrieved 2 October 2016, from http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Origami

Sosnoski, D. (1996). Introduction to Japanese Culture. Singapore. Tuttle Publishing.

Where did Origami Come From?. (2010). A Brief History of Origami. Retrieved 29 September 2016, from https://origamihistory.wordpress.com/2010/11/16/where-did-origami-come-from/

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The tradition of origami has been passed down over centuries and across the world; it is now a common activity done by both children and adults. “Origami first travelled to America in the 1920s. This is because an ethnographer published a book about origami in that time” (Sosnoski, D. Introduction to Japanese Culture); after that origami was spread world-wide and adapted as a common hobby. Contrary to popular belief, origami actually orginated in China and then travelled to Japan sometime in the 1600s. Origami only became well known once it reached Japan. By looking at the information it is clear, the cultural practice of origami is now done as a fun activity to pass time and create art. It is also still used as a form of meditation, but not a common one.

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Religion was a big part of Shogunate Japan and so it isn’t a revelation that origami was originally intended to be a religious practice. The fact that origami use to be a religious practice was that is was calming and so it was used as a form of meditation. Another reason is because the cost of paper was very high. So the right to do origami was reserved for higher classes or people who had the money for it. As time progressed and paper got cheaper they started having it in classes because of the rationale that paper play would develop creative thinking (Sosnoski, D. Introduction to Japanese Culture). It was also used in subjects like math because it was a fun way to show kids shapes or other things. As said by Daniel Sosnoski, “Another argument for origami is that it helps develop an appreciation for another form of beauty.” The beauty he is referring to in this quote is the beauty of origami, a simple form of art. And it is very true as by doing origami you learn to appreciate more simple things. By looking at the information provided it is clear that the religious beliefs had somewhat of an impact on origami. This impact was not very much as religion just isn’t a part of origami.

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“The art of origami is usually believed to have begun in Japan during the 17th century AD.” ("Where did Origami Come From?”, 2010).This quote shows that researchers’ don’t know exactly when and where origami started because, as stated later in the paragraph it was sourced from, “paper decomposes rather quickly making it difficult to keep records.”. Akira Yoshizawa was the person to invent modern origami, but that was only in the 1900s. The oldest example of origami done is the yuanbao, which is paper folded to look like gold nuggets. Now days that example of origami would look more like crumpled paper, but still counts as one of the oldest pieces of this art form. From the information provided, origami did emerge, or at least gain more popularity, during the time during the time of the Shogunate.

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Life in Shogunate Japan was very different in medieval times compared to the society we call “modern Japan”. Medieval Japan lasted from 700CE – 1900CE, but Shogunate Japan lasted from 1603CE – 1867CE. It was different in the Shogunate time period as this is when Japan started to develop as a society more. The hierarchy consisted of the emperor and shogun, warriors, peasant farmers, artisans/craftsmen’s, merchants and lastly, ronin and hinin. Each class had a different level of respect; for example, a ronin would have no respect any class and a horrible lifestyle from, being at the bottom of the hierarchy (Clyne J. etal History 8: The ancient and modern world, pg.202). This made their life extremely difficult. Ronin/ hinin where actually considered to be outside the hierarchy as they were treated as outcasts. If you compared a peasant farmer to a ronin/hinin you would see there is a major difference in lifestyle and respect, but that would be the case with any class and ronin/hinin. A peasant farmer provided food for upper and lower classes, which was a hard enough job as it is, and so had a sense of respect to their title. Origami had somewhat of an influence on the life in Japan, origami was originally used as a religious practice, since paper was costly, but origami eventually became a part of learning; being used in subjects such as mathematics, art and science (History of Origami from past). By looking at the evidence provided, it is clear that life in Shogunate Japan was all about status and your position in the hierarchy really affect your lifestyle.

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Origami is the art of folding paper and has been practiced across the world for years. In this virtual museum the history and culture of origami with be unfolded.
Enjoy the reach of this museum.