Japanese missions to Ming China



Japanese missions to Ming China represent a lens for examining and evaluating the relationships between China and Japan in the 15th through the 17th centuries. The nature of these bilateral contacts encompassed political and ceremonial acknowledgment as well as cultural exchanges. The evolution of diplomatic ties accompanied the growing commercial ties which grew over time.

Nineteen trade missions traveled from Japan to China between 1401 and 1547. The main trade goods exported from Japan were Japanese swords, copper, and sulfur; from China, copper coins, raw silk, and silk fabrics. Every one of these missions were headed by a Zen Buddhist monk from one of the so-called Kyoto Gozan (京都五山) or "five great Zen temples of Kyoto", consisting of Nanzen-ji, Tenryū-ji, Shokoku-ji, Kennin-ji, Tofuku-ji and Manju-ji.

Tally trade
The economic benefit of the Sinocentric tribute system was profitable trade. The tally trade (勘合貿易, kangō bōeki in Japanese and kanhe maoyi in Chinese) was a system devised and monitored by the Chinese. The tally trade involved exchanges of Japanese products for Chinese goods. The Chinese "tally" was a certificate issued by the Ming. The first 100 such tallies were conveyed to Japan in 1404. Only those with this formal proof of Imperial permission represented by the document were officially allowed to travel and trade within the boundaries of China; and only those diplomatic missions presenting authentic tallies were received as legitimate ambassadors.

Over time, the conditions of this mutually beneficial tally trade would evolve beyond its initial perimeters.