Kikujidō seated by a stream

Kikujidō seated by a stream, 1830, 9th month, Edo period (1600–1868)

Where object was made: Japan

Material/technique: color woodcut

Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 351 x 490 mm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 138 3/16 x 192 15/16 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 20 x 25 in

Credit line: William Bridges Thayer Memorial

Accession number: 1928.7522

Not on display

Add to portfolio

If you wish to reproduce this image, please submit an image request

Images

Label texts

Archive Label date unknown:
This announcement surimono commemorates the formal commencement of a samisen player's career, and shows a scene based on the story of Kikujidō, The Chrysanthemum Boy, a favorite of Mu Wang, the fifth emperor of the Zhou Dynasty in China. As a result of a court intrigue, the youth was banished to a remote area for a minor breach of ettiquette. The emperor still loved the boy, and taught him a mantra to protect him from harm. The valley where the boy was sent was filled with chrysanthemums, and to pass the time, Kikujidō inscribed the words of the charm on the flower's leaves and dropped them in a stream. Some leaves floated to populated areas, and people who picked them from the stream and kept them lost their need for food and water.