A History of Timelessness: Constructing Authenticity at the Ise Shrines
Sep 2026 · Asia Pacific Modern Book 24 · Univ of California Press
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About this ebook
Every twenty years for over a millennium, the Ise shrines have been rebuilt from the ground up, and hundreds of shrine treasures replaced. At Ise, the aspiration to timelessness that is the essence of all monuments has been pursued through endless repetition rather than construction in durable materials. Spanning from Ise's prehistoric beginnings to the present, A History of Timelessness explores the manifold circulation of goods this massive enterprise has engendered, as well as the political and ideological purposes the ritual rebuilding has served. In the late nineteenth century, the state took control of the shrines and recast them as an embodiment of modern imperial power. Yet, rather than resolving their status, nationalization awakened new anxieties around Ise's permanence and ephemerality and new contests over shrine buildings and materials. Through an exploration of Ise's tumultuous history, Jordan Sand rethinks the temporality of monuments and the materiality of the state.
Every twenty years for over a millennium, the Ise shrines have been rebuilt from the ground up, and hundreds of shrine treasures replaced. At Ise, the aspiration to timelessness that is the essence of all monuments has been pursued through endless repetition rather than construction in durable ma...
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About the author
Jordan Sand is Professor of Japanese History at Georgetown University and Kokugakuin University.
Jordan Sand is Professor of Japanese History at Georgetown University and Kokugakuin University.
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