ticketsMember | Make a donation

Plate from the Erotic Book Mounds of Dyed Colors: A Pattern Book for the Boudoir (Someiro no yama neya no hinagata), First Month

ca. 1736–44
Not on view
The artist’s signature appears in the corner of a screen to the upper right of the scene in which a wakashu (homosexual youth) competes with a courtesan for the attentions of a visitor to the Yoshiwara pleasure district. The opening scenes of erotic books tend to be less risqué than the subsequent images, and this one, the “First Month” from Pattern Book for the Boudoir, is indeed tamer than those for the other eleven months pictured in the book. A seventeen-syllable hokku poem accompanies each image. Here, the reference is to a special species of plum called Niō, alluding to the Guardian King figures that guard a temple gate. One of the sculptures opens its mouth to pronounce the mystical syllable “Aun”—but here it is linked to the playful custom of marking the first laughter or joke of the New Year.

Niō ume
aun no kuchi no
hatsuwarai
“Guardian Kings” plums
Utters the sacred syllable “Aun”
in the first laugh of the year.

—Trans. John T. Carpenter

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • 『閨の雛形』　正月
  • Title: Plate from the Erotic Book Mounds of Dyed Colors: A Pattern Book for the Boudoir (Someiro no yama neya no hinagata), First Month
  • Artist: Okumura Masanobu (Japanese, 1686–1764)
  • Period: Edo period (1615–1868)
  • Date: ca. 1736–44
  • Culture: Japan
  • Medium: Hand-colored woodblock illustration; ink and color on paper
  • Dimensions: H. 9 9/16 in. (24.3 cm); W. 14 1/4 in. (36.2 cm)
  • Classification: Prints
  • Credit Line: Fletcher Fund, 1929
  • Object Number: JP1499
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

More Artwork

More Artwork
A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.
Kabuki Play Kusazuribiki from the Tales of Soga (Soga monogatari), Okumura Masanobu Japanese, Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk, Japan

Kabuki Play Kusazuribiki from the Tales of Soga (Soga monogatari)

Okumura Masanobu
18th century
Fagot–gatherer Finds Boy with Sparrow, Okumura Masanobu Japanese, Monochrome woodblock print; ink on paper, Japan
Fagot–gatherer Finds Boy with Sparrow
Okumura Masanobu
Woman Pursuing Sparrow, Okumura Masanobu Japanese, Monochrome woodblock print; ink on paper, Japan
Woman Pursuing Sparrow
Okumura Masanobu
Two Figures, Okumura Masanobu Japanese, Woodblock print; ink and color on paper, Japan
Two Figures
Okumura Masanobu
Triptych of Umbrellas, Okumura Masanobu Japanese, Undivided triptych of woodblock prints; ink and color on paper, Japan
Triptych of Umbrellas
Okumura Masanobu

Related Content

Timeline of Art History

Entries from The Met's art encyclopedia.

Publications

Books, guides, and catalogues published by The Met.

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.