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Unknown Maker, Japanese

Apparel fabric

Maker

Unknown Maker, Japanese

Culture

Japanese

Title

Apparel fabric

Period

Showa

Year

ca. 1945

Medium

  • silk,
  • printed

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

  • Silk,
  • printed

Materials

silk

Geography

Place Made: Japan

Dimensions

Length: 250.2 cm (98 1/2 inches)

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Winthrop W. Aldrich

Object Number

58.184.30

Type

  • Costume Accessories

Exhibition History

Nuance in Nature
Birds and Flowers in Japanese Textile Design
Feb 16, 2007 – Jul 08, 2007

Label copy

Both of these textile lengths were produced as 20th-century kimono fabric and represent the traditional auspicious symbols of spring. Clusters of peonies, called the “King of Flowers” by the Chinese, are a symbol of good fortune and erotic love. Chrysanthemums and cherry blossoms (the most beloved flower of the Japanese and a symbol of the ephemeral) are flowers that typically represent different seasons, indicating that by around mid-century, strict adherence to traditional seasonable representations in dress were relaxed.

The second textile features clusters of peonies and also lilies, which is a flower introduced very late into Japan, and not part of the ancient vocabulary of symbols.

Image use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use.

In copyright This object is in copyright

Tombstone

Unknown Maker, Japanese
Apparel fabric, ca. 1945
Silk; printed
Length: 250.2 cm (98 1/2 inches)
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Winthrop W. Aldrich 58.184.30

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