Outer Robe (Katsugi) with Chrysanthemum Crest
Returned to lender
This work of art was on loan to the museum and has since been returned to its lender.A katsugi is a woman’s mantle or coatlike veil, usually in the shape of a kosode, worn pulled over the head with the sleeves unused. Some katsugi were made of silk, but most were hemp with indigo-dyed patterns. This example represents a type with a large flower motif, here a chrysanthemum crest, where the garment covers the head. As the chrysanthemum crest is placed lower than usual and the robe’s other patterns are relatively simple, this could be a regional variation of katsugi made for a commoner in Kyoto, where it remained popular throughout the Edo period. Stencil-dyeing and tube-drawn paste-resist dyeing (tsutsugaki) were used to create patterns on this robe in white reserve: the applied rice paste resisted the indigo dye. From shoulder to hem, the patterns are: chrysanthemums and stylized concentric motifs among small dots against an indigo ground; plum blossoms on a green ground; stylized hemp leaves against an indigo ground; and bracken fern fiddleheads on a blue-black ground.
Artwork Details
- 藍木綿地菊紋小紋模様被衣
- Title: Outer Robe (Katsugi) with Chrysanthemum Crest
- Period: Edo period (1615–1868)
- Date: first half 19th century
- Culture: Japan
- Medium: Plain-weave cotton with stencil paste-resist dyeing
- Dimensions: 53 1/2 × 45 7/8 in. (135.9 × 116.5 cm)
- Classification: Costumes
- Credit Line: Promised Gift of John C. Weber
- Curatorial Department: Asian Art