Image

Nishimura Shigenaga

Akuta River (Akutagawa)

Description

Maker

Attributed to Nishimura Shigenaga (Japanese, ca. 1697-1756)

Title

Akuta River (Akutagawa)
Tales of Ise
Ise monogatari

Period

Edo (Japanese period)

Year

ca. 1720s

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

ink and color

Supports

Geography

Place Made: Japan

Dimensions

Sheet: 28.9 x 13.8 cm (11 3/8 x 5 7/16 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Poem
Shirotama ka
nani zo to hito no
tohishi toki
tuyu to kotahete
kienamashi mono o

The man expresses with a poem his grief that the lady with whom he eloped has now disappeared after a thunderstorm and has been devoured, he thinks, by a devil:
When she asked me "what are these white pearls?" [the rain]
I wish I had answered "dew drops,"
and evaporated just as they

Signature: unsigned

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke

Object Number

20.1065

Type

Exhibition History

Exhibition History

Poets, Heroes, and Courtiers
Literary and Narrative Traditions in Japanese Prints
Sep 06, 2002 – Dec 01, 2002

Label copy

This illustration appears to refer to a story in The Tale of Ise (Ise monogatari) that describes the abduction of a beautiful woman by a man who became enamored of her.

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Image use

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This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Attributed to Nishimura Shigenaga (Japanese, ca. 1697-1756)
Akuta River (Akutagawa); Tales of Ise; Ise monogatari, ca. 1720s
Polychrome wood block print
Sheet: 28.9 x 13.8 cm (11 3/8 x 5 7/16 inches)
Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke 20.1065

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