In ordinary life they dressed like others of their own rank
or station, but when engaged in their sacred office were robed in white
or in a special official costume, wearing upon their heads the _eboshi_
or peculiar cap which we associate with Japanese archaeology. They knew
nothing of celibacy; but married, reared families and kept their scalps
free from the razor, though some of the lower order of shrine-keepers
dressed their hair in ordinary style, that is, with shaven poll and
topknot. At some of the more important shrines, like those at Ise, there
were virgin priestesses who acted as custodians both of the shrines and
of the relics.[26]
In front of the miyas stood what we should suppose on first seeing was a
gateway. This was the _torii_ or bird-perch, and anciently was made only
of unpainted wood. Two upright tree-trunks held crosswise on a smooth
tree-trunk the ends of which projected somewhat over the supports, while
under this was a smaller beam inserted between the two uprights. On the
torii, the birds, generally barn-yard fowls which were sacred to the
gods, roosted. These creatures were not offered up as sacrifices, but
were chanticleers to give notice of day-break and the rising of the sun.
The cock holds a prominent place in Japanese myth, legend, art and
symbolism.
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