Drawing the First Water of the New Year

ca. 1769–70

Not on view

Symbols of spring abound in this poem. A young couple draws the “first water of the New Year” (wakamizu) in decorated buckets; pine saplings sit by the doorway, and plum blossoms burst into bloom. The scene also calls to mind an episode from the tenth-century Tales of Ise (Ise monogatari) known as the “Well curb,” in which young lovers recall measuring their heights by the well as children. It reads

Haru o hete
kyō tatematsuru
wakamizu ni
chitose no kage ya
matsu ukamuramu .

As spring arrives,
today, we offer to the gods
the year’s first drawn water
attached with pine shoots
as from time immemorial
—Trans. John T. Carpenter

Artwork Details

鈴木春信画　若水を汲む男女
Title: Drawing the First Water of the New Year
Artist: Suzuki Harunobu (Japanese, 1725–1770)
Period: Edo period (1615–1868)
Date: ca. 1769–70
Culture: Japan
Medium: Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Dimensions: 11 1/4 x 8 1/2 in. (28.6 x 21.6 cm)
Classification: Prints
Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1914
Object Number: JP156
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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First Leaf of the Shunga; The Delightful Love Adventures of Maneyemon, Suzuki Harunobu Japanese, Woodblock print; ink and color on paper, Japan — First Leaf of the Shunga; The Delightful Love Adventures of Maneyemon
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Gentleman Taking Leave of His Lady on a Veranda, Suzuki Harunobu Japanese, Woodblock print; ink and color on paper, Japan — Gentleman Taking Leave of His Lady on a Veranda
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The Curtain Clam, Suzuki Harunobu Japanese, Woodblock print; ink and color on paper, Japan — The Curtain Clam
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Woman Dancer in Daimyo's Palace, Suzuki Harunobu Japanese, Woodblock print; ink and color on paper, Japan — Woman Dancer in Daimyo's Palace
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