蝉形掛花籃|Hanging Flower Basket (Kake-hanakago) in the Shape of a Cicada

Unknown

mid-19th century · Rattan · Asian Art

In Japan, the cicada represents summer. Since, depending on the species, this insect may take as long as seventeen years to develop underground before it emerges as a nymph, it has come to represent concepts such as hope for rebirth and immortality. Displayed on the pillar of the tokonoma (alcove) in the tearoom, this hanging flower basket would recall a cicada on a tree—a summer scene expressing the seasonal setting of the tea gathering.

Artist

Unknown

Date

mid-19th century

Medium

Rattan

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Edward C. Moore Collection, Bequest of Edward C. Moore, 1891