Note 55 — Chapter III
Reading edition
The widow of Atsumori who was killed in the fight here referred to, in 1184, is credited with the invention of the folding-fan, although dates are somewhat confusing. At the temple of Mieido in Kyoto, whither she had retired to hide her grief under the garb of a nun, she cured the abbot of a fever by fanning him with a paper folding-fan over which she muttered incantations: and to this day the priests of the temple are considered special adepts in the manufacture of fans; hence the name Mieido is adopted by many fan shops all over the islands. (Basil Chamberlain, Things Japanese.)