New Year Decorations and Tablewares
19th century
Medium
Woodblock print (surimono); ink and color on paper
Dimensions
8 1/16 x 7 1/8 in. (20.5 x 18.1 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929
Accession Number
JP2028
Tags
Art Historical Context
Welcome to the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Asian Art collection! *New Year Decorations andwares* is a delicate woodblock print (surono) by Ryūryūkyo Shinsai, a master of the ukiyo-e tradition in19th-century Japan during the Edo period (161–1868). Created this festive time, the artwork captures elegant seasonal arrangements, likely featuring symbolic plants like pine boughs plum blossoms alongside ornate tablewares—hallmarks of New Year's celebrations known as *oshogatsu*. These decorations warded off evil spirits and invited prosperity, reflecting Japan's deep-rooted Shinto and Buddhist custo...
About the Artist
Ryūryūkyo Shinsai · 1799–1823
Ryūryūkyo Shinsai (柳々居辰斎), active from 1799 to 1823, was a prominent Japanese ukiyo-e printmaker based in Edo (modern Tokyo), renowned for his mastery of surimono—luxurious, privately commissioned woodblock prints produced for elite poetry circles and New Year's celebrations. He began his training under Tawaraya Sōri before becoming a student of the legendary Katsushika Hokusai, from whom he recei...