Kikyo in Combined Square Playing Cards

Kikyo crest in Combined Square. Famous as the crest used by Sakamoto Ryoma, a hero of the end of the Edo period (Bakumatsu). The name refers to the outer shape of the crest. Some sources, including Bakumatsu historian Tsurugi Yoichi and 'Kamon Daizen' (supervised by Honda Soichiro), refer to it as 'combined masu' (Japanese measuring box), while 'Monsho no Saihakken' refers to it as 'overlapping squares'. However, major crest publications such as 'Mon-ten' , 'Heian Monkan', 'Mon no Izumi', and 'Mon no Shiori' all refer to it as 'Kumiai Kaku', so this name is used here.