紫縮緬地桜樹鈴燕模様小袖|Court Lady’s Garment (Kosode) with Swallows and Bells on Blossoming Cherry Tree

Unknown

mid-19th century · Silk crepe (chirimen) with silk embroidery and couched gold thread · Asian Art

The design of this elegant garment, a type favored by aristocrats and court ladies from the late Edo (1615–1868) through the early Meiji period, is composed of a single flowering cherry tree. A red string with tiny gold bells is tied to the tree, while birds fly around its delicate blossoms and sit on the branches. The flowers and leaves are embroidered; their bright white, red, and green hues form a sharp contrast with the deep purple ground created through the use of an aniline, or chemical, dye imported from Europe.

Artist

Unknown

Date

mid-19th century

Medium

Silk crepe (chirimen) with silk embroidery and couched gold thread

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Purchase, Tomoko Trust, The Robert and Joyce Menschel Family Foundation and Josephine L. Berger-Nadler Gifts, 2018