By Sasaki Takahiro, Glynne Walley, Funami Kazuya, Kuboki Hideo, and Unno Keisuke
The fragments featured in this section underscore the incredible richness of research and teaching potential the Oregon Tekagami presents. The topics of the mini essays range from tekagami as an embodiment of the aesthetic preferences of a collector or collectors (Sasaki); the joy and challenges of the close reading and detective work involved in unraveling the circumstances of the original production of a calligraphy piece (Walley); the evidence of fervent study of classical Japanese and Chinese poems and literatures (Funami and Kuboki); to the public nature of a diary in premodern Japan and its use as a record of courtly ceremonies and codes of conduct (Unno).