紅地御所車桜蒲公英模様唐織|Noh Costume (Karaori) with Court Carriages, Cherry Blossoms, and Dandelions

Unknown

late 18th–first half of the19th century · Twill-weave silk brocade with supplementary-weft patterning in metallic thread · Asian Art

This Noh costume has unusually large motifs of courtly ox carriages (gosho-guruma), dandelions, and cherry blossoms partially covered by the opaque gold clouds typical of Genji paintings. In the “Battle of the Carriages” episode in Chapter 9, “Leaves of Wild Ginger” (Aoi), Lady Rokujō, feeling neglected by her lover Genji, goes to watch him participate in the procession of the Kamo Festival, but the grooms of Genji’s wife, Lady Aoi, force her carriage aside. The carriages seen here follow the festival tradition of using the heart-shaped leaves of the wild ginger plant (aoi) sacred to the Kamo Shrine as adornment. The “Battle of the Carriages” is also referenced in the Noh play Lady Aoi (Aoi no Ue) by Zeami (ca. 1364–ca. 1443).

Artist

Unknown

Date

late 18th–first half of the19th century

Medium

Twill-weave silk brocade with supplementary-weft patterning in metallic thread

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

The Howard Mansfield Collection, Gift of Howard Mansfield, 1936