Case (Inrō) with Design of Minamoto no Yoritomo and Courtiers Watching Released Cranes Fly Away at Akanumagahara
Unknown Artist
19th century
Medium
Gold and silver maki-e with gold lacquer Ojime: Stone in the shape of a melon, 19th century Bequest of Stephen Whitney Phoenix, 1881 81.1.424.85 Netsuke: Ivory in the shape of a deer, 19th century Gift of Mrs. Russell Sage, 1910 10.211.510
Dimensions
H. 3 3/8 in. (8.6 cm); W. 2 3/16 in. (5.6 cm); D. 13/16 in. (2 cm)
Classification
Inrō
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Stephen Whitney Phoenix, 1881
Accession Number
81.1.337
Tags
Art Historical Context
This exquisite 19th-century Japanese *inrō*—a lacquered case worn suspended from the belt to carry medicines, seals, or tobacco—captures a poetic moment from history: Minamoto no Yomo, the founder of Japan's first shogunate in the 12th century, and courtiers watching released cranes soar over Akanumagahara plain. Crafted during the late Edo period (161–1868), when such portable art forms flourished among samurai and merchants, the design celebrates themes of freedom, longevity, and good fortune, as cranes were revered symbols in Japanese culture. The case gleams with masterful *maki-e* techni...