Minister Hong bows to the heavenly teacher

Yokoyama Kazan, artist

1784–1837

Minister Hong bows to the heavenly teacher, 1829, Edo period (1600–1868)

Where object was made: Japan

Material/technique: color woodcut

Dimensions:
Object Height/Width (Height x Width): 206 x 178 mm
Object Height/Width (Height x Width): 8 1/8 x 7 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 20 x 25 in

Credit line: William Bridges Thayer Memorial

Accession number: 0000.1587

Not on display

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Label texts

Exhibition Label:
"The Art of Stories Told," Jun-2004, Veronica de Jong
The Chinese novel The Marshes of Mount Liang (called Suikoden in Japanese) became popular in Japan during the Edo period (1615-1868). Chinese literature was particularly fashionable at this time and this novel appealed to many because it was about a band of fearless warriors. The novel begins with an imperial minister ascending a mountain near the capital so that he may meet with a Daoist master. The Chinese emperor had sent Minister Hong with an incense burner to ask the Daoist sage for help in alleviating China of a plague that was devastating the lands. As the minister ascended the misty mountain he came upon a boy on an ox and asked him where he could find the Daoist adept. The boy said he had already left for the capital and so the minister began his descent. He soon realized, though, that the boy on the ox was in fact the Daoist sage he had been seeking.