Scenes from the Tales of Ise
Unknown Artist
mid-1600s
Medium
Pair of six-panel folding screens; ink, color, and gold on gilded paper
Dimensions
109.3 × 258.9 cm · painting only: 95.2 × 276 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Japanese Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
John L. Severance Fund
Accession Number
1969.127
About this artwork
While the 11th century Tale of Genji is universally regarded as Japan's literary masterpiece, the source for visual imagery in Japanese culture is rivaled by another literary classic, the Tales of Ise. A 10th century anthology of poems interspersed with commentary, the Ise portrays the emotional and geographical journey of a courtier from the capital (Kyoto) into the countryside and beyond. The poems describe features of the natural, untamed terrain, linking them to the rather melancholy state o...