Ducks and Chrysanthemums, from Album of Birds and Flowers (Bairei kachōga fu 楳嶺花鳥画譜)
Ducks and Chrysanthemums, from Album of Birds and Flowers (Bairei kachōga fu 楳嶺花鳥画譜)

Currently not on view

Ducks and Chrysanthemums, from Album of Birds and Flowers (Bairei kachōga fu 楳嶺花鳥画譜),

1883

Kōno Bairei 幸野楳嶺, 1844–1895

Japanese

Meiji era, 1868–1912

x1983-24

Information

Title
Ducks and Chrysanthemums, from Album of Birds and Flowers (Bairei kachōga fu 楳嶺花鳥画譜)
Dates

1883

Maker
Kōno Bairei 幸野楳嶺
Medium

Woodblock print (ōban tate-e format); ink and color on paper

Dimensions

sheet trimmed to block: 37.2 x 24.1 cm. (14 5/8 x 9 1/2 in.)
mount: 49 x 36.5 cm. (19 5/16 x 14 3/8 in.)
mat: 55.9 x 40.6 cm. (22 x 16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Jerome Straka

Object Number
x1983-24
Place Made

Asia, Japan

Signatures

Artist seal in upper left corner

Inscription

Title in cartouche in top border

Marks/Labels/Seals

Publisher's seal (Ogura Hobei) in bottom border

Description

Pair of ducks upper right preparing to alight on water; yellow and pink chrysanthemums at left. Border containing inscriptions. Some hand-coloring to supplement the printed? In lower right corner, inscription within white square superimposed upon red square; short inscription on right edge of latter.

[Translation of inscribed poem written on old mat. Date and transcriber unknown]

South go the wild geese for leaves are now falling
I see on enemy line of wild geese / Ma Tai
High in the moonlight wild geese are soaring
(Toyono Kanoto)

Quotations added below:

It was a white chrysanthemum
I came to take today,
But which are colored, which are white,
I'm half afraid to say,
So thick the frost today!
(Mitsuna, beginning of 9th century)

The white chrysanthemum -- lo! are they aught
But prisoned Autumn moon-beams, caught
In early frost?
(Nise, early 18th century)

The morning breezes sigh,
A single goose sails idly past
Across a cloudy sky.
The wild geese settle with the
Same old cry.
(Unknown author, Tang dynasty)

Far off over the southern rivers
the calling of a wild-goose
(Wei Ying-wu)

Culture
Japanese
Period
Meiji
Type
prints, japanese printmaking styles, woodblock prints, oban
Materials
ink, paper, oban, color
Techniques
woodcut (process)
Subject
chrysanthemums, ducks, poems

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The Museum regularly researches its objects and their collecting histories, updating its records to reflect new information. We also strive to catalogue works of art using language that is consistent with how people, subjects, artists, and cultures describe themselves. As this effort is ongoing, the Museum’s records may be incomplete or contain terms that are no longer acceptable. We welcome your feedback, questions, and additional information that you feel may be useful to us. Email us at collectionsinfo@princeton.edu.

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