Embassies from the Lūchū Kingdom

Embassies from the Okinawan kingdom of Lūchū ( Ryūkyū ) to Tokugawa Japan illuminate the permeability of early modern Japan&s;s cultural and diplomatic world. Subjugated by the Shimazu in 1609 yet retaining royal governance, Lūchū dispatched ceremonial embassies to Edo that displayed Ming- and Qing-inspired regalia, music, and ritual performance. These processions, widely witnessed and reproduced in prints, highlighted the kingdom&s;s cultural refinement and distinctiveness, asserting independence even within vassalage. Audience ceremonies before the shogun reinforced both foreignness and affiliation, while Lūchūan arts, textiles, and music left lasting imprints on Japanese culture. Seifman situates Lūchū &s;s embassies within the global networks of Tokugawa diplomacy.