Robe (Kosode) with Mandarin Orange Tree and Auspicious Characters

Robe (Kosode) with Mandarin Orange Tree and Auspicious Characters

Robe (Kosode) with Mandarin Orange Tree and Auspicious Characters. Culture: Japan. Dimensions: 50 x 65 in. (127 x 165.1 cm). Date: second half of the 18th century. An auspicious mandarin orange tree (tachibana) bearing fruit and flowers rises from the back hem of this narrow-sleeved robe (kosode). The sleeves and upper body of the robe are embellished with characters richly embroidered in green and purple silk and couched gold thread (laid across the ground fabric and stitched to the surface). The three characters (left to right) read manzai-raku, or "enjoying comfort for ten thousand years," which also alludes to a type of ancient court music (gagaku) and dance presented exclusively at the court to celebrate the New Year. At the same time, the phrase calls to mind a song from the auspicious Noh play Takasago, which proclaims that performing Manzai-raku brings long life.

Dyed and embroidered silk crepe with couched gold-wrapped threads

Edo period (1615-1868)

Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, USA

Album / Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY

Model: No - Property: No
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2430 x 3083 px | 21.4 MB

20.6 x 26.1 cm | 8.1 x 10.3 in (300 dpi)