Account book sunk in the shadow of the oiran's sleeves: The duty of opulence with shinzo and bald girls (late Edo period)

Account book sunk in the shadow of the oiran's sleeves: The duty of opulence with shinzo and bald girls (late Edo period)
The Yoshiwara oiran were symbols of luxurious costumes and graceful escapades, but behind their opulence lay the heavy financial burden of covering the costumes and education of shinzō and bald girls at their own expense. As young apprentices, bald girls followed the oiran, learning etiquette and chores, and when they grew up and became furisode shinzo, they needed more expensive furisode, obi, hairpins, and cosmetics. These items appeared to be provided by the brothel, but in reality they were accumulated by the oiran as part of the ledger.

In the oiran courtesan's procession, the luxury of the bald or newly made costume was an important element of the oiran's own prestige, and a poorly dressed oiran would lose her reputation, so the oiran had to spend more on the girls who accompanied her rather than on her own preparations. The cost of training in such arts as the shamisen, dance, singing, and tea ceremony increased the deficit for the oiran. From the perspective of the brothel as a whole, this was an investment in nurturing the next generation of popular prostitutes, but the burden of these expenses was placed on the oiran.

Therefore, no matter how much money the oiran earned, they had to pay more and more to maintain their opulence, and they were unable to get out of debt. Behind the splendid oiran's entertainments, there was a heavy account to support the lives and education of the bald and shinzo, and their opulence was not a symbol of affluence but of burden and responsibility.