“Early Spring Greens: Part 2” (Wakana ge)
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.The album to which these leaves originally belonged is highly valued for Tosa Mitsuyoshi’s artistry and the calligraphy by eighteen noblemen on uniquely decorated papers with gold and silver and stenciled designs. Ishikawa Tadafusa (1582–1650), a daimyo in service to the Tokugawa shoguns, commissioned the work. Its overall opulence and scenes of an idyllic Rokujō estate and childbirth made it appropriate for inclusion in a bridal trousseau.
Here, the Akashi Empress has just safely delivered a son, solidifying Genji’s political power and fulfilling the dream of the Akashi Novitiate. The labor occurs in the quarters of the Akashi Lady, where the new mother is being assisted by attendants while the Akashi Lady and Lady Murasaki fuss over the baby, one of them holding him close to her chest.
Here, the Akashi Empress has just safely delivered a son, solidifying Genji’s political power and fulfilling the dream of the Akashi Novitiate. The labor occurs in the quarters of the Akashi Lady, where the new mother is being assisted by attendants while the Akashi Lady and Lady Murasaki fuss over the baby, one of them holding him close to her chest.
Artwork Details
- 土佐光吉筆 徳大寺実久書 源氏物語手鑑 「若菜 下」
- Title: “Early Spring Greens: Part 2” (Wakana ge)
- Artist: Tosa Mitsuyoshi (Japanese, 1539–1613)
- Artist: Calligraphy by Tokudaiji Sanehisa (Japanese, 1583–1616)
- Period: Momoyama period (1573–1615)
- Date: 1612
- Culture: Japan
- Medium: From an album of eighty paired paintings and calligraphic texts; ink, color, and gold on paper
- Dimensions: Image: 7 7/8 × 10 5/16 in. (20 × 26.2 cm)
Calligraphy: 6 5/8 × 13 3/4 in. (16.9 × 35 cm)
Mat: 23 13/16 × 19 3/16 in. (60.5 × 48.8 cm) - Classification: Illustrated Books
- Credit Line: Lent by Kubosō Memorial Museum of Arts
- Curatorial Department: Asian Art