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Courtesan of Eguchi

Calligrapher Butsumo Keisen Japanese
painting:1770−80; inscription: 1820s–30s
Not on view
Most famous for his woodblock print designs, the Ukiyo e artist Shunshō created this finely executed painting on the theme of the courtesan of Eguchi, a twelfth century prostitute named Tae who lived in the Eguchi licensed quarters in Osaka. According to legend, one rainy night the itinerant monk poet Saigyō (1118−1190), while on the way back to his temple, stopped at her brothel seeking shelter and their dialogue was seen as commentary on Buddhist metaphysics.

By the Edo period it had become common to create parodic versions of Tae as an incarnation of the bodhisattva Fugen (Sanskrit: Samanthabhadra), who is usually portrayed riding an elephant, his sacred vehicle. By presenting the bodhisattva in the guise of a prostitute, Shunshō demonstrates the Buddhist concept that appearances are unreal and that there is no fundamental difference between sanctity and sinfulness.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • 勝川春章筆 佛母恵選賛　江口の君図
  • Title: Courtesan of Eguchi
  • Artist: Katsukawa Shunshō 勝川春章 (Japanese, 1726–1792)
  • Calligrapher: Butsumo Keisen (Japanese, 1771–1854)
  • Period: Edo period (1615–1868)
  • Date: painting:1770−80; inscription: 1820s–30s
  • Culture: Japan
  • Medium: Hanging scroll; ink and color on paper
  • Dimensions: Image: 14 7/8 × 20 7/16 in. (37.8 × 51.9 cm)
    Overall with mounting: 48 1/16 × 25 1/4 in. (122 × 64.1 cm)
    Overall with knobs: 48 1/16 × 27 3/8 in. (122.1 × 69.5 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection, Gift of Mary and Cheney Cowles, 2018
  • Object Number: 2018.853.26
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

More Artwork

More Artwork
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The Actor Segawa Kikunojō as a Courtesan of the Ōmiya Brothel, Katsukawa Shunshō 勝川春章 Japanese, Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper, Japan
The Actor Segawa Kikunojō as a Courtesan of the Ōmiya Brothel
Katsukawa Shunshō 勝川春章
ca. 1786 (Tenmei 6)
Armor (<i>Gusoku</i>), Saotome Ietada Japanese, Iron, lacquer, silk, gilt copper, Japanese
Armor (Gusoku)
Armorer Helmet bowl signed Saotome Ietada
Armorer Breastplate inscribed inside, Myōchin Munesuke
16th and 18th centuries
Woods and Valleys of Mount Yu, Ni Zan Chinese, Hanging scroll; ink on paper, China
Woods and Valleys of Mount Yu
Ni Zan
dated 1372
Picture Book on the Music of the Pine Trees (Ehon matsu no shirabe) 絵本松のしらべ, Katsukawa Shunshō 勝川春章 Japanese, Woodblock printed book; ink and color on paper, Japan
Picture Book on the Music of the Pine Trees (Ehon matsu no shirabe) 絵本松のしらべ
Katsukawa Shunshō 勝川春章
1795 (Kansei 7)
Koto (箏), Various woods, ivory, metal, nylon, tortoiseshell, abalone, lacquerwork, Japanese
Koto (箏)
Japanese
20th century

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