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''Ayabune'' were a particular type of ship employed by the royal government of the [[Kingdom of Ryukyu|Kingdom of Ryûkyû]] to carry embassies to the [[Ashikaga shogunate]] and to the [[Shimazu clan]] of [[Satsuma province|Satsuma]] in the period before Satsuma's [[1609]] [[invasion of Ryukyu|invasion of the kingdom]]. They were generally sent to congratulate a new head of the Shimazu clan whenever there was a succession, or on similar celebratory occasions, as part of the maintenance of a friendly relationship between Ryûkyû and Satsuma. The ''ayabune'' embassies typically brought gifts, including ''[[awamori]]''.

''Ayabune'' were a particular type of ship employed by the royal government of the [[Kingdom of Ryukyu|Kingdom of Ryûkyû]] to carry embassies to the [[Ashikaga shogunate]] and to the [[Shimazu clan]] of [[Satsuma province|Satsuma]] in the period before Satsuma's [[1609]] [[invasion of Ryukyu|invasion of the kingdom]]. They were generally sent to congratulate a new head of the Shimazu clan whenever there was a succession, or on similar celebratory occasions, as part of the maintenance of a friendly relationship between Ryûkyû and Satsuma. The ''ayabune'' embassies typically brought gifts, including ''[[awamori]]''.

The ship was an unarmed, decorative ship in the Chinese style, with decorations of blue-green birds and a yellow dragon on the bow of the ship, and the king's crest, a ''[[tomoe|mitsu-domoe]]'' also featured prominently. As a result, it came to be known variously as a ''ryûsen'' (dragon ship)<ref>Not to be confused with [[dragon boat]] races, which use a very different type of boat.</ref>, or an ''ayabune'' (crest ship); the character ''aya'', the same as the ''mon'' in ''kamon'' ("house crest" or "family crest"), was sometimes replaced with a different character, also read ''aya'', and referring to a particular textile design.

The ship was an unarmed, decorative ship in the Chinese style, with decorations of blue-green birds and a yellow dragon on the bow of the ship, and the king's crest, a ''[[hidari gomon|mitsu-domoe]]'' also featured prominently. As a result, it came to be known variously as a ''ryûsen'' (dragon ship)<ref>Not to be confused with [[dragon boat]] races, which use a very different type of boat.</ref>, or an ''ayabune'' (crest ship); the character ''aya'', the same as the ''mon'' in ''kamon'' ("house crest" or "family crest"), was sometimes replaced with a different character, also read ''aya'', and referring to a particular textile design.

The earliest instance in records extant today of such a ship arriving in Satsuma appears in a record for the 8th month of [[1481]], but it is believed that Ryûkyû sent ''ayabune'' missions to Satsuma earlier than that. ''Ayabune'' may have also carried Ryukyuan missions to the [[Muromachi shogunate]].<ref name=kuro>Kuroshima Satoru 黒島敏, ''Ryûkyû ôkoku to Sengoku daimyô'' 琉球王国と戦国大名, Tokyo: Yoshikawa kôbunkan (2016), 22.</ref>  

The earliest instance in records extant today of such a ship arriving in Satsuma appears in a record for the 8th month of [[1481]], but it is believed that Ryûkyû sent ''ayabune'' missions to Satsuma earlier than that. ''Ayabune'' may have also carried Ryukyuan missions to the [[Muromachi shogunate]].<ref name=kuro>Kuroshima Satoru 黒島敏, ''Ryûkyû ôkoku to Sengoku daimyô'' 琉球王国と戦国大名, Tokyo: Yoshikawa kôbunkan (2016), 22.</ref>