Appreciate thousands of years of Japanese beauty in surreal video from Nara University

For many, Japan is the land of technology mixed with elements of the “city of the future”. So it’s sometimes surprising to remember that Japan has a very long and rich history. Evidence suggests that the first known inhabitants were in Japan around 30,000 BC, followed by what is known as the Jomon period from about 14,000 BC to 300 BC. Needless to say, that’s a really long time ago, (for humans), and in this striking video from Nara University, beauty is captured in makeup and clothing from several major time periods.

Piecing together the look of Japanese women hundreds of years ago, let alone thousands of years ago, can be a tricky task. Luckily, Nara University has bright and talented students from six different departments that collaborated on the project as well as famous costume designer Isao Tsuge, who’s known for his work on the NHK Taiga dramas. The visually remarkable video offers an authentic look at Japanese beauty through the following five important eras.

▼ Jomon – 14,000 BC to 300 BC ▼ Nara – 710 AD to 794 ▼ Heian – 794 to 1185 ▼ Showa – 1926 to 1989 ▼ Heisei – 1989 to present

It’s interesting to see how not only the clothes and hair change, but the makeup styles change fairly drastically over time as well. And while not everyone would have been dressed up like the examples shown here, these were some of the ideal images of beauty that people of the time would strive for. It’s also nice to see traditional outfits of Japan that aren’t the kimono, because as we’ve seen, that isn’t the only spectacular piece of clothing from Japanese history. Be sure to head over to the Nara University YouTube channel so you can also check out a behind the scenes video.

Source: Net Lab

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