Butterflies (“Kochō”), chapter 24 from The Tale of Genji (Genji monogatari)

Unknown (Japanese)


Item type:
painting
Date of creation:
1573-1615
Height:
165.1 cm  (65 in.)
Width:
367.7 cm  (144 3/4 in.)
Technique / Medium:
ink and color on paper
Place of creation:
Nihon [Japan] (日本国)

Additional titles

源氏物語図屏風 (胡蝶)

    Item location

  • Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York)
    Japanese art[Museum inv. no.: 2015.300.32]

Description

Events from two consecutive days are conflated on this screen, which illustrates the “Kochō,” or “Butterflies,” chapter from The Tale of Genji. Spring festivities have been organized at Genji’s palace. A particular scene on a boat depicts men playing instruments: one playing a taiko, one playing a shinobue, and another playing a shakuhachi.

Instruments [MIMO Code] (notes)

Shakuhachi [4055]
Taiko [2741]
Shinobue [4060]

RIdIM images


Image URLs

image link 1

RIdIM record id

5199