The Legendary Empress Jingū

mid-19th century

Not on view

Jingū, a legendary empress of Japan, was a warrior-ruler, said to have been active in the third century. A wet nurse cradles her son, the future emperor Ōjin. Takenouchi no Sukune, her wizened general, holds a fan inscribed with the words “destroyer of armies,” referring to a militarily auspicious star in the Big Dipper, and a reminder that Katsushika Hokusai (1760–1849) and many of his students—including Kōsai Hokushin—were adherents of the cult of the North Star.

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

神功皇后図
Title: The Legendary Empress Jingū
Artist: Kōsai Hokushin 蛟斎北岑 (Japanese, 1824–1876)
Period: Edo period (1615–1868)
Date: mid-19th century
Culture: Japan
Medium: Hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk
Dimensions: Image: 28 7/8 × 12 15/16 in. (73.3 × 32.9 cm)
Overall with mounting: 63 1/8 × 16 5/16 in. (160.3 × 41.4 cm)
Overall with knobs: 63 1/8 × 18 in. (160.3 × 45.7 cm)
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: Purchase, Friends of Asian Art Gifts, 2014
Object Number: 2014.513
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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