End-blown Flute (Hitoyogiri)
Unknown Artist
late 1800s
Medium
Lacquered bamboo with gold and silver maki-e (sprinkled powder designs)
Dimensions
33.5 × 2.6 cm
Classification
Musical Instrument
Department
Japanese Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Henry F. Lyman
Accession Number
1921.914
About this artwork
The hitoyogiri 一節切 is considered one type of shakuhachi 尺八 bamboo flute and was popular in the 16th and 17th centuries. It is smaller and of weaker sound than the better known fuke 普化, and was thus known as a "small bamboo" or kotake 小竹, during a brief 19th-century revival. The node of the bamboo is positioned between the four finger holes on the front, and the thumb hole at the top of the back. This one has a design of cherry blossoms and scattered petals.