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Two Sample Letters on the Chinese Lantern Festival and a Poem about Plum Blossoms

Calligraphy by Kojima Sōshin Japanese
1657
Not on view
This handscroll by the Kyoto calligrapher Kojima Sōshin begins with passages from letter templates ushering in the Lantern Festival, which marked the end of the New Year’s celebrations on the fifteenth day of the first month. The scroll concludes with a Chinese poem about plum blossoms. Sōshin’s blending of bold and thin characters, on lavishly decorated paper, creates a sense of festivity.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • 小島宗貞筆　「元宵」尺牘二首・「梅」七言絶句一首
  • Title: Two Sample Letters on the Chinese Lantern Festival and a Poem about Plum Blossoms
  • Artist: Calligraphy by Kojima Sōshin (Japanese, 1580–ca. 1656)
  • Period: Edo period (1615–1868)
  • Date: 1657
  • Culture: Japan
  • Medium: Handscroll: ink on decorated paper
  • Dimensions: Image: 10 7/8 in. × 13 ft. 5/16 in. (27.6 × 397 cm)
    Overall with mounting: 10 7/8 in. × 13 ft. 11 11/16 in. (27.6 × 426 cm)
    Overall with knobs: 11 1/2 in. × 13 ft. 11 11/16 in. (29.2 × 426 cm)
  • Classification: Calligraphy
  • Credit Line: Mary and Cheney Cowles Collection, Gift of Mary and Cheney Cowles, 2020
  • Object Number: 2020.396.21
  • Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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