UNCHO, INSCRIBED BY KITAO MASANOBU (SANTO KYODEN), INSCRIBED BY KYOKUTEI BAKIN. Courtesan and her Attendants under a Willow Tree

UNCHO (active late 18th century) • INSCRIBED BY KITAO MASANOBU (SANTO KYODEN) (1761-1816) • INSCRIBED BY KYOKUTEI BAKIN (1767-1848)

Courtesan and her Attendants under a Willow Tree

Courtesan and her Attendants under a Willow Tree. Artist: Uncho (Japanese, active late 18th century); Inscribed by Kitao Masanobu (Santo Kyoden) (Japanese, 1761-1816); Inscribed by Kyokutei Bakin (1767-1848). Culture: Japan. Dimensions: 36 1/2 x 13 3/8 in. (92.7 x 34 cm) Overall with mounting: 72 13/16 × 18 7/8 in. (185 × 48 cm) Overall with knobs: 72 13/16 × 20 5/8 in. (185 × 52.4 cm). Date: 1796. A high-ranking courtesan (oiran), accompanied by her teenage apprentice (shinzo) and two child attendants (kamuro), promenade beneath a weeping willow in the spring. While the identity of the artist who signs himself "Uncho" has yet to be determined, we may assume that he received his art name from the ukiyo-e artist Katsukawa Shuncho. The two inscribers of the poetry above, Kyoden and Bakin, are among the greatest popular writers of the day. They have both added Chinese and Japanese poetic phrases referring to the Yoshiwara pleasure quarters. Kyoden uses metaphors of willow trees and flowers; Bakin quotes a Chinese poem and then likens a courtesan to a thousand-armed Kannon bodhisattava in the service of men.

Hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk

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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3148 x 4200 px | 37.8 MB

26.7 x 35.6 cm | 10.5 x 14.0 in (300 dpi)