Traditional Japanese Scenes

Illustrations of Japanese cultural events and figures, capturing ceremonies and historical narratives with traditional art styles.

Actors in Kanjinchô: Ichikawa Kuzô II as Togashi no Saemon

Sagara Totomi No Kami hiding behind a stack of tatami mats.; Sagara Totomi No Kami; One hundred warriors selected by Yoshitoshi; Kaidai Hyaku Senso. Sagara Totomi No Kami with raised sword, veschuing behind a stack of tatami mats. A pine in the foreground.

Niu Myōjin early 14th century Japan The female Shinto deity of Mount Kōya, Niu Myōjin, is believed to have given Kūkai (Kōbō Daishi, 774-835) permission to build his monastery for Esoteric Buddhist training at Mount Kōya in 816. Here she is shown seated on a tatami mat wearing elaborately layered robes and with the long, flowing hair of a court lady. In the disk at the top of the painting, the deity is represented again by the seed syllable (a sacred Sanskrit character) referring to her original Buddhist form (honji) as Dainichi Nyorai (Sanskrit: Mahāvairocana), the central Buddha of the Esoteric Buddhist cosmos. A painting of Niu Myōjin such as this is usually paired with one of Kariba Myōjin, the male deity of Mount Kōya.. Niu Myōjin. Japan. early 14th century. Hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk. Kamakura period (1185-1333). Paintings

A Courtesan Followed by Two Girl Attendants 1671-1751 Nishikawa Sukenobu Japanese. A Courtesan Followed by Two Girl Attendants 57021

Scholar Playing a Qin - Korean Art - 1800s

Tokugawa Tsunayoshi Visiting Nikkō Shrine on the Thirtieth Anniversary of Iemitsu's Death. Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (Japan, 1839-1892). Japan, 1875, July. Prints; woodblocks. Color woodblock print

Opening the gate of the heavenly rock cave (Amano Iwato Biraki no zu)

Goyu; No. 36. Goyu: one of the fifty-three noted places on Tokaido, painted by Hiroshige; De Tôkaidô van Hiroshige; Hiroshige no fude Tôkaidô.Female serveers draw to travelers to get them to their tea houses. On the right a woman watches and is already having a man equipping.

Ghyakurakan segaki, Festival at 500 Arhats Temple., Utagawa, Toyokuni, 1786-1865, artist, between 1818 and 1820, 1 print : woodcut, color ; 38.6 x 25.5 cm., Print shows a parody of words (mother breast feeding her child beneath a mosquito net and the words for the demons being cast out during the festival). Source: Nichibunken.

Samurai is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. By the end of the 12th century, samurai became almost entirely synonymous with bushi, and the word was closely associated with the middle and upper echelons of the warrior class. The samurai followed a set of rules that came to be known as Bushidō. While they numbered less than ten percent of Japan's population, samurai teachings can still be found today in both everyday life and in martial arts such as Kendō, meaning the way of the sword.

Three women visit a Jizo Sanctuary, Torii Kiyonaga, 1780 - 1784 print Two women looking at kneeling woman, in prayer, for a sanctuary dedicated to Jizo, the Japanese patron saint of deceased children. print maker: Japanpublisher: Tokyo paper color woodcut temple, shrine ~ non-Christian religions. one person praying. lantern

Shichūhan'ei tanabata matsuri - digital files from original prints | Library of Congress

The Namazu, also called the Onamazu, is a creature in Japanese mythology and folktales. The Namazu is a gigantic catfish said to cause earthquakes and tremors. Living in the mud under the Japanese isles, the Namazu is guarded by the protector god Kashima, who restrains the catfish using the kaname-ishi rock. Whenever Kashima lets his guard down, Namazu thrashes about and causes violent earthquakes. The Namazu rose to new fame and popularity after the Ansei great earthquakes that happened near Edo in 1855. This lead to the Namazu being worshipped as a god of world rectification (yonaoshi daimyojin), sent by the gods to correct some of the imbalances in the world. Catfish woodblock prints known as namazu-e became their own popular genre within days of the earthquake. They were usually unsigned and often depicted scenes of a namazu or many namazu atoning for their deeds. They were quickly squashed by the Tokugawa Shogunate, the prints censored and destroyed, with only a handful surviving

Gezicht op het Inari heiligdom in Oji; Oji Inari no zu.View of a torii with a fox image on either side, behind which a staircase to a temple building.

A Chinese graveyard visited by several mourners. Brush drawing by Chinese artist, ca. 1850.

Children in Chinese costumes playing in the snow Eizan, Kikugawa (1787 1867)

Qigong exercise to treat pain in the lower and upper back

Ten Wise Men Among the Disciples of Confucious 19th century Yashima Gakutei Japanese. Ten Wise Men Among the Disciples of Confucious 54950

The Actor Yamashita Kinsaku in the Role of Mutsuhana ca. 1767 Torii Kiyomitsu Japanese. The Actor Yamashita Kinsaku in the Role of Mutsuhana 55606

Women Worshipping the Rising Sun between the Twin Rocks at Ise Kitagawa Utamaro Japanese. Women Worshipping the Rising Sun between the Twin Rocks at Ise 37341

The Actors Sanogawa Ichimatsu I as Soga no Goro and Ikushima Daikichi II as Kewaizaka no Shosho in the play Monzukushi Nagoya Soga, performed at the Ichimura Theater in the first month, 1748 1748 Japan. Color woodblock print; hosoban, benizuri-e . Torii Kiyomasu II

The Actors Nakamura Kiyosaburo I as Okiku and Ichimura Kamezo I as Kosuke in the play Hiyoku no Kagamon, performed at the Ichimura Theater in the seventh month, 1751 1751 Japan. Color woodblock print; hosoban, benizuri-e . Torii Kiyomasu II

Samurai is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. By the end of the 12th century, samurai became almost entirely synonymous with bushi, and the word was closely associated with the middle and upper echelons of the warrior class. The samurai followed a set of rules that came to be known as Bushid. While they numbered less than ten percent of Japan's population, samurai teachings can still be found today in both everyday life and in martial arts such as Kend, meaning the way of the sword.

Yugoyoji Temple (Fugisawa), in The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido Road (Tokaido Gojusan Tsugi-no Uchi), Ando Hiroshige, Japanese, 1797-1858, Woodblock print in colored ink on paper, Four blind men are about to stroll through the torii, a wooden gateway entrance to the Enoshima Benzaiten Shrine. The legend of Sugiyama Kenko, a blind man, mastered the skill of acupuncture after praying to the deity, Benzaiten. It is said that many who were blind visited this shore town to acquire a skill. On the Daigiri Bridge, across the Sakai River, are sightseers on their way to the island of Enoshima. Far off on in the middle of the mountain is the view of Yugyoji Temple (Shojoko-ji). Today this is still a popular tourist destination regardless of the steep climb., Japan, ca. 1834, seascapes, Print, Print

The Star Descends on Echi on the Thirteenth Night of the Ninth Month (Kugatsu jusan yoru Echi shoko), from the series Concise Illustrated Biography of the Great Priest Nichiren (Koso go ichidai ryakuzu) 1825-1840 Japan. Color woodblock print; oban . Utagawa Kuniyoshi

Mizuki Kikusaburo as a Woman Standing near a Small Stream and Looking at a Wandering Puppet-showman Impersonated by Ichimura Takenojo (Later Known as the 8th Ichimura Uzaemon) probably 1709 Okumura Masanobu Japanese. Mizuki Kikusaburo as a Woman Standing near a Small Stream and Looking at a Wandering Puppet-showman Impersonated by Ichimura Takenojo (Later Known as the 8th Ichimura Uzaemon) 36995

Kan, a girl serving in the Izutsu ya teahouse, and Fuseya, geiko (candidate for geisha) from the Dgi ya teahouse Choki, Eishosai (FL. 17 .. 18 ..)

Priest Kochi with His Death Poem , 19th century. Woodblock print, 11 1/4 x 7 1/4 in. Asian Art 19th century

Eight Daoist Immortals Welcoming Jurjin 17th century Japan In this diptych (with 14.76.52), some of the revered Eight Daoist Immortals of ancient China look skyward to watch the god of longevity, Shaolaoren (known in Japanese as Jurjin), descend from above on a crane. Most of the immortals are easily identifiable. On the left scroll are Lu Dongbin, carrying a sword on his back; He Xiangu, the sole female, holding a magic mushroom; and Zhang Guolao, who turns his back and releases a miniature donkey from a bag. On the right scroll are Lan Caihe with clappers and Li Tieguai, who creates a miniature image of himself by blowing into the air. The basket of flowers is an attribute of Han Xiangzi, who had the power to make flowers grow and bloom instantly.The exaggerated foreignness of some of the faces, verging on the grotesque, and the nervous, wavering outlines of the robes highlighted in white suggest that the unidentified painter, probably an artist of the Kano school, may have been co

Characters from Ōtsu-e Folk Paintings Dancing Bon-odori. Utagawa Hiroshige (Japan, Edo, 1797-1858). circa 1847-1852. Prints; woodblocks. Color woodblock print

Foreigners in Miyozaki-chō 11th month, 1860 Utagawa Yoshimori Japanese. Foreigners in Miyozaki-chō 73531

Jiz Bosatsu Playing a Flute mid- 17th century Kano Tan'y This elegant vision of the bodhisattva Jiz Bosatsu (Sanskrit: Ksitigarbha) playing a flute is a rare and innovative portrayal that may have been created by Kano Tan’y himself, who, as head of the Shogun’s painting academy (edokoro), was familiar with most of the ancient paintings that had survived to his day. The few similar paintings known of a flute-playing Jiz are by Tan’y or his followers. The gentle, boyish figure, dancing, playing a flute, and wearing both the traditional monk’s robe and the flowing scarves and jewels of a bodhisattva, combines several aspects of Jiz’s traditional iconography. Instead of lotus petals, he wears a huge, overturned lotus leaf upon his head. His monk’s staff and sacred wish-granting jewel have been replaced by a phoenix-headed flute.. Jiz Bosatsu Playing a Flute. Kano Tan'y (Japanese, 1602-1674). Japan. mid- 17th century. Hanging scroll; ink and color on paper. Edo period (1615-1868).

Faith in the Third Day Moon, Yoshitoshi, Tsukioka

Twenty-Four Japanese examples or Philial Piety for the Honchôren. In a NIS (Tokonoma), Taira No Kiyomori (1118-1181) is between books; His son Shigemori (1138-1179) is sitting in front of him. The son was more wedding of the emperor than his own father. The story of Heiki tells about the battle between the Taira and Minaoto families. With one poem.

Sanjō Kantarō as a Woman Arranging Her Hair Before a Lacquer Mirror before 1763 Attributed to Torii Kiyomasu II Japanese. Sanjō Kantarō as a Woman Arranging Her Hair Before a Lacquer Mirror 56594

First Day of Autumn (Risshu) ca. 1865 Suzuki Harunobu Japanese In old Japan, autumn comprised the seventh, eighth, and ninth months of the lunar calendar. The print shows a woman in the blue-and-white striped "yukata" and a girl looking through the open "shoji" at the right, where bamboo and poem-slip decorations for the Tanabata Festival (seventh day of the seventh month) are seen above the housetops. The lantern hanging outside the "shoji" is also a Tanabata decoration.. First Day of Autumn (Risshu) 45073

MATSUIDA, Travelers on a Hill Passing The A Shrine, Board 17 from the Series: Sixty Nine Stages of The Kiso Kaido Road /Kaido Rokujukyuu NO Uchi NOUCHI NO UCHI NO UCHI

Kannon Temple in Iwaidani in the Tajima province, board 39 from the series: Views of famous places in about sixty provinces /Rokuju yoshu meisho zue

The warrior Hojo no Yasutoki. Print shows the warrior Hojo, Yasutoki sitting on a raised platform with three warriors seated before him, a servant presents a raised tray to the three warriors.

Procession of a Daimyo 1676-1689 Japan. Hand-colored woodblock print; oban yoko-e, sumizuri-e . Hishikawa Moronobu

Tempelprent voor de Nishimikado in Kamakura; Kamakura, Nishimikado.Bodhisattva sitting on lotus against circular background in which two dragons.

Acumoxa chart: Location of the geguan point, Chinese woodcut

Chinese woodcut: Qigong exercise to nourish essence and Qi

Immortal Poet 17th century Kano Shōun Japanese. Immortal Poet 45706

Kichipoten, Buddhist goddess of beauty, painting on hemp, Japan. Japanese Civilisation, Nara period, 8th century.

Dancers late 17th-early 18th century Japan The male and female performers on this screen wear sumptuously decorated kosode. The hairstyles and decorative motifs on the costumes reflect fashion trends of the Kanbun period (1661-72), though the work might have been painted slightly later. The well-balanced presentation of figures embodies the elegance and reserved movements of Japanese dance. It also points to the importance of fans in the overall scheme of a performance and demonstrates how the flowing sleeves of a costume were used to accent the fluid lines created by dancers.Japanese dance underwent a transition during the seventeenth century. The religious and festival themes that had characterized prior dance forms declined in the regimented environment created by the Tokugawa shogunate. Older traditions were absorbed and transformed into different dances and incorporated into other performing arts, most notably Kabuki, which began as a form of female dance performance and evolved.

View of the festival at the Myojin shrine in Kanda; Kanda Myojin Sairei No Zu; New expenses of perspective prints; Shinpan Uki-e. Face on the road leading to the myojin sanctuary, packed with people because of the festival. The crow on three legs, to be seen on it, above the people outstanding, emblem in the middle of the print, is the symbol of the sanctuary.

Popular Chinese street theatre, commemorating the New Year. Date: 19th Century

Woman and attendant at entrance gate of Enoshima 1810-1829 Japan. Color woodblock print; shikishiban, surimono . Totoya Hokkei

Yoshitsune a serenade bringing to Joruri Hime .. Yoshitsune, extremely left, flute playing for Joruri Hime, standing in doorway Extremely right; between the two loved ones in, in the garden, different courtesets, two with lantern; Japanese garden in the background.

San yakusha kaian-ji no momijigari, Three actors gathering maple leaves at Kaian Temple., Utagawa, Toyokuni, 1769-1825, artist, between 1804 and 1818, 1 print : woodcut, color ; 37.7 x 25.2 cm., Print shows the actors Matsumoto Koshiro V, Bando Mitsugoro III, and Iwai Hanshiro V in rural landscape.

Samurai is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. By the end of the 12th century, samurai became almost entirely synonymous with bushi, and the word was closely associated with the middle and upper echelons of the warrior class. The samurai followed a set of rules that came to be known as Bushidō. While they numbered less than ten percent of Japan's population, samurai teachings can still be found today in both everyday life and in martial arts such as Kendō, meaning the way of the sword.

Two lucky gods and a temple dancer, Nakamura Hôchû, 1826 print Two men and a woman hold on their hands; First the god Ebisu with a rod, followed by a temple dancer, behind which the god Daikoku with rice bags in the background and a money bag in the foreground. Or paper color woodcut representations ~ gods, demi-gods, heroes, etc. (non-Christian religions). angling. postures and gestures of arm(s) and hand(s) in relation to another person

The Sacred Dance at the Shinmei Shrine in Shiba at Dawn (Shiba Shinmei, Omiya gengyo kagura no zu), from the series Famous Places in the Eastern Capital (Toto meisho) 1842-1857 Japan. Color woodblock print; oban . Utagawa Hiroshige

Position of 'Portal of Life' (right kidney), Chinese woodcut

Daoyin technique to cultivate Original Essence, C19 Chinese

The anger of the mountain god, leaf 4 from the series: the lovely love adventures of the Maneemon. .

Actors from the Noh theater piece Tomonaga, Tsukioka Kôgyo, 1926 print Diptyk. Left leaf: actor with white mask, dressed in blue kimono with floral motifs, in the role of the owner of an inn. Right sheet: Actor with mask in red kimono talking with actor with sword, in the role of Tomonaga. paper color woodcut group of actors, troupe; actors on the stage

The Actor Ichikawa Monnosuke II as Daidoji Tabatanosuke in the Play Mukashi Mukashi Tejiro no Saru, Performed at the Ichimura Theater in the Eighth Month, 1792 1787-1797 Japan. Color woodblock print; hosoban; left sheet of diptych ( ) . Katsukawa Shun'ei

A scene from the traditional jataka, or Buddha life-cycle stories. The Buddha-to-be leaves the luxurious confinements of his father's palace and sees a sick man, one of the four encounters that lead him to seek a path to enlightenment.

Woman collecting herbs and text unknown

Woman washing her hands inside the a house, a man and a boy at the gate, from the series: Ise monoga Katsukawa, shunsho (1726 1792)

Tenman Shrine Bell 1860-1869 Japan. This image from the Tenman Shrine depicts a bell hung with long colored strips of fabric. Visiting the Tenman Shrine on New Yearís Day, in a ìfirst visitî ceremony (hatsumode), was a yearly tradition that was incomplete without making an offering and ringing the temple bell. Thus, the bell became a shorthand symbol of the New Year. Nakagawa Rogetsu skillfully used the vertical format of this print to create an image of cloth strips hanging down and intermingling with falling plum petals.. Color woodblock print; surimono . Nakagawa Rogetsu

The Actor Sanjō Kantarō as an Itinerant Buddhist Nun ca. 1715 Attributed to Kondo Kiyoharu Japanese. The Actor Sanjō Kantarō as an Itinerant Buddhist Nun 56554

The revenge of the Forty-seven Ronin (Shi-ju-shichi-shi), also known as the Forty-seven Samurai, the Aki vendetta, or the Genroku Aki incident (Genroku aki jiken) took place in Japan at the start of the 18th century. One noted Japanese scholar described the tale as the country's 'national legend'. It recounts the most famous case involving the samurai code of honor, bushidi. The story tells of a group of samurai who were left leaderless (becoming ronin) after their daimyo (feudal lord) Asano Naganori was forced to commit seppuku (ritual suicide) for assaulting a court official named Kira Yoshinaka, whose title was Ki zuke no suke. The ronin avenged their master's honor after patiently waiting and planning for two years to kill Kira. In turn, the ronin were themselves ordered to commit seppuku for committing the crime of murder. With much embellishment, this true story was popularized in Japanese culture as emblematic of the loyalty, sacrifice, persistence, and honor that all good peopl

Buddhist Monk Receives Cassia Seeds, Yoshitoshi, Tsukioka

Part of a set of five hanging scrolls entitled 'Extermination of Evil', depicting benevolent deities who expel demons of plague. This scroll was originally part of a handscroll known as the 'Second edition of the Masuda family Hell Scroll' before being cut into sections after World War II. The text on the scroll explains the acts of the god in exterminating evil. Tenkeisei, the God of Heavenly Punishment, is shown consuming the ox-headed deity Gozu Tenno, the god of pestilence. The set of five scrolls has been designated as a National Treasure of Japan in the category 'Paintings'.

Japan: Ibara Sumiyoshi Shrine (Ibara Sumiyoshi Jinja), from the series 'One Hundred Views of Osaka' (Naniwa hyakkei), Utagawa Yoshitaki (1841-1899), 1860

Festival Offerings of plants. By Toyokuni. 1789. Japan.

Izumo Province Hotohoto Festival at Izumo Shrine (Izumo, Taisha Hotohoto no zu), from the series Famous Places in the Sixty-odd Provinces (Rokujuyoshu meisho zue) 1853 Japan. Color woodblock print; oban . Utagawa Hiroshige

Chinese people washing three large, white elephants. Gouache painting.

The Namazu, also called the Onamazu, is a creature in Japanese mythology and folktales. The Namazu is a gigantic catfish said to cause earthquakes and tremors. Living in the mud under the Japanese isles, the Namazu is guarded by the protector god Kashima, who restrains the catfish using the kaname-ishi rock. Whenever Kashima lets his guard down, Namazu thrashes about and causes violent earthquakes. The Namazu rose to new fame and popularity after the Ansei great earthquakes that happened near Edo in 1855. This led to the Namazu being worshipped as a god of world rectification (yonaoshi daimyojin), sent by the gods to correct some of the imbalances in the world. Catfish woodblock prints known as namazu-e became their own popular genre within days of the earthquake. They were usually unsigned and often depicted scenes of a namazu or many namazu atoning for their deeds. They were quickly squashed by the Tokugawa Shogunate, the prints censored and destroyed, with only a handful surviving

Deity of the planet Mars. unknown, graphic artist

Women making a pilgrimage to the cave of the goddess Benten on Enoshima Island HIROSHIGE, Ichiryusai (1797 1858)

The Kabuki Actor Segawa Kikunojo in the Role of a Courtesan Reading a Letter late 1740s Ishikawa Toyonobu Japanese. The Kabuki Actor Segawa Kikunojo in the Role of a Courtesan Reading a Letter 55781

Two men at a well Kubo, SHUNMAN (1757 1820)

Sanno Shrine at Nagatababa (Nagatababa Sannogu), from the series Famous Places in the Eastern Capital (Toto meisho) 1827-1843 Japan. Color woodblock print; oban . Utagawa Hiroshige

Miyato River by Great Bank of Asakusa River, No 68 from One Hundred Views of Edo (Asakusa-gawa Okawa-bata, Miyato-gawa), Ando Hiroshige, Japanese, 1797-1858, Woodblock print in colored ink on paper, This image is capturing a summer tradition located on the Ryogoku Bridge. Visitors about to ascend Mount Oyama first rinse themselves in the body of water, Sumida. This sacred ritual is an act of purification before they begin their forty-mile hike towards the south. Two boats, one visible on the right side and the other located at the bottom left corner, filled with people are completing the last acts of the ritual after they have completed the climb up the mountain. As they chant, they are also holding paper strips (gohei), which will later be passed throughout the streets of Edo. This sacred act on the river is accompanied by other boats going along their typical daily routine., Japan, 1857, landscapes, Print, Print

Celebration of the god of the Ebis Festival in Imamiya /Imamiya toka Ebisu, from the series: Views of famous places of Naniwa /Naniwa meisho zue

Children Playing a Game Ainu. , 19th century. Hanging scroll, ink and color on paper, 24 5/8 x 47 13/16 in. (62.5 x 121.5 cm). Asian Art 19th century

The Return to Court of the Four Graybeards of Mount Shang (left); Su Shis Visit to the Wind and Water Cave (right late 16th century In the Style of Kano Mitsunobu Japanese The subject of the right screen is the future Emperor Hui (reigned 194-188 B.C.) of the Han dynasty. Although the crown prince, his rightful ascendance to the throne was threatened by his fathers desire to install a son from a favored concubine. But the unprecedented return to court of four former officials who had previously abandoned their positions and secluded themselves in the countryside near Mount Shang assured Huis succession. Their loyalty so impressed the emperor that he withdrew his illegitimate proposal. The left screen illustrates a poem by the renowned scholar and statesman Su Shi (Su Dongpo, 1037-1101). In 1073, as Su was traveling from Hangzhou to Xincheng, he stopped at the Wind and Water Cave to meet the young poet Li Bi. After they viewed plum blossoms and composed poetry together, Su inscribed

Though revered as deities, the Immortals of the Chinese pantheon have weaknesses, such as being over-fond of the wine bottle Date: 1915

Tenkeisei, God of Heavenly Punishment (Part of the set of five hanging scrolls 'Extermination of Evil') by Anonymous / Nara National Museum/ 12th century/ Japan/ Gouache on paper/ The Oriental Arts/ 26x39,2/ Mythology, Allegory and Literature

The actor Kikunojō III and Iwai Hanshirō IV.,

The Tanabata Festival, from the series Amusements of the Five Festival Days (Gosetsu asobi) 1785-1795 Japan. Color woodblock print; chuban . Katsukawa Shunchô

The Actor Ichikawa Danzo III as the holy hermit Narukami in the play Narukami , performed with Miyakodori Azuma Komachi (Bird of the Capital Komachi of the East) at the Morita Theater in the third month, 1768 1763-1773 Japan. Color woodblock print; hosoban . Katsukawa Shunsho

China: Besieged in Tushan, Guan Yu (-220 CE) makes three conditions. From a Ming Dynasty edition of 'Romance of the Three Kingdoms', called Sanguo zhi tongsu yanyi

Sumiyoshi odori, Sumiyoshi dance., Hosoda, Eishi, 1756-1829, artist, between 1791 and 1793, 1 print : woodcut, color ; 39 x 25.6 cm., Print shows five women dancing beneath a large parasol during the annual rice planting ritual at the Sumiyoshi shrine.

Tobae mitate ryugen sennin - Toba-e correspondence of a Chinese sage. Print shows a man smoking a cigarette in a long holder, and a dragon ascending in a plume of smoke coming from a box on the ground next to him; a child gestures toward the dragon.

INARI Temple in Oji /Oji IIRI NO YASHIRO, Board 18 from the Series: One Hundred Famous Views of Edo /Meisho Edo Hyakkei HIROSHIGE, Ichiryusai (1797 1858)

Chinese woodcut: Qigong exercise to treat lumbar pain

Mountain god with tiger and attendants. Culture: Korea. Dimensions: 35 1/2 × 23 1/2 in. (90.2 × 59.7 cm). Date: 1874.This painting features a mountain god in the guise of a benevolent-looking old man--wearing a red robe and a green sash embellished with gold-painted designs and holding a wooden staff--seated on a tiger. The beast, despite its huge glaring eyes and bared teeth, looks more comical than ferocious, as is typical of tigers in nineteenth-century Korean painting. Three young male attendants flank the deity: their small size reflects both their youth and their lesser stature relative to the mountain god. Behind the figures stands a peach tree, symbol of longevity.In the Korean native religion, the tiger was worshipped as a deity of the mountains. In Buddhism the Flower Garland (Avatamsaka) Sutra lists the mountain deity as one of 39 Protectors of the (Buddhist) Law. Late Joseon-period paintings of the mountain god represent a confluence of the native tradition and Buddhist i

Somagahana Fuchiemon, The sumo wrestler Somagahama Fuchiemon., Utagawa, Toyokuni, 1786-1865, artist, between 1848 and 1854, 1 print : woodcut, color ; 38.3 x 25.8 cm., Print shows sumo wrestler Somagahana Fuchiemon, full-length portrait, standing, facing slightly left, wearing robes with two swords.

Nice cut and sort the tea. Behind two tables on a veranda are four Chinese women working on making the tea. Further on the porch a child and a woman with a flat basket with tea. Two seat figures for the building, also busy with tea. Part of a group of four gouaches about the production and export of Chinese tea through the VOC around 1750.

Scholar under Willow, Unknown artist.

Parade of people from the five countries, Utagawa Sadahide, 1861 print Left sheet of the triptych. paper festivities on events of national importance. folk costume, regional costume. human races; peoples; nationalities

Setsubun Festival; Shoki throwing beans at a demon. Hangrolschildering in doos

Ten Kings of Hell before 1195 Jin Chushi Chinese This is one from a set of scrolls (30.76.290-.294) illustrating the theme of the Ten Kings of Hell, which developed during the second half of the Tang dynasty (618-907). The theme transforms the Indian Buddhist view of judgment after death into a typically Chinese bureaucratic process. Before being permitted to transmigrate into the next life, a soul is tried by a different king each week for seven weeks; it is sent to the eighth king on the hundredth day, to the ninth after a year, and to the tenth the third year after death. Here, each scroll shows a kingassisted by a scribe and other officialsexamining and passing sentence on the souls of the dead; in the foreground demons punish the wicked.Most extant Song and Yuan dynasty Buddhist paintings were preserved in Japan; many had been taken there from Ningbo, Zhejiang Province, an important port city for Japanese merchants and pilgrims. Inscriptions on the present paintings state that t

The Actor Kataoka Nizaemon VII as the Old Beggar Woman Kurozuka Babā at Adachigahara 1795 (Kansei 7), 11th month Katsukawa Shun'ei 川春英 Japanese The actor Kataoka Nizaemon got his start on the Kabuki stage in Kamigata (Kyoto and Osaka), but moved to Edo 1794. The following year, at the kaomise of the eleventh month at Miyako Theater in Edo, he performed this role in the play “Yoshitsune and a Second Flurry of Snow” (Kaeribana yuki no Yoshitsune, or Kaeribana yuki mo Yoshitsune 帰花雪義経). The role on this print has also been tentatively identified as Yuri Hachirō 由利八郎, but contemporary records note that Nizaemon played a different role in Act II, and as indicated here most likely represents the infamous onibaba (demon hag) of Kurozuka, whose gravemound can still be visited today in Adachihara, the supernatural subject of Noh and Kabuki plays through the centuries. This hosoban print is the center sheet of a triptych (see see “Ukiyo-e taikei,” vol. 3, “Shunshō,” nos. 190-192, p. 100, Shūeis

Nichiren events the waves at Kakuda during his exile to Sado.; Sashu Ryukei Kakuda Nami Daimoku.; Short illustrated biography of the founder; Koso Go Ichidai Ryakuzu. Nichiren, the founder of the Buddhist Lotus sect, standing in red robe and with rosary in the right hand, in full boat, the high waves engaged with the Sutra 'Namu Myo Kyo' visible in the water.

The actor Sawamura Sojuro lll as the lay priest Kiyomori 1790-1800 Japan. Color woodblock print; oban . Utagawa Kunimasa

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