View of the Incense Burning Ceremony from the "Chronicle of Grand Pacification", from the series Newly Published Perspective Pictures

View of the Incense Burning Ceremony from the "Chronicle of Grand Pacification", from the series Newly Published Perspective Pictures

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Not currently on view

Utagawa Toyokuni

The Chronicle of Grand Pacification was a historical epic from the late fourteenth century about the Northern court of Kyoto at war with the Southern Imperial court in Yoshino. During this time the appreciation of tea and incense gained popularity with the court nobles and warrior class, who held elaborate contests to identify the various scents. One founder of the “way of incense,” the nobleman Sasaki Takauji, was notorious for extravagant incense contests like the one depicted here. Participants attempted to guess the origin of the various sticks of aloeswood, which were scented with some 170 different fragrances. The print is an unusual size, larger than the standard oban sheet used for commercial work. The careful printing includes color gradations in the clouds and sparkling mica dust on the rooftops. The paulownia crests on the curtains symbolized the Imperial throne. Court nobles are recognizable by their long hakama pants and black ceremonial hats, and the warriors by the elaborate suits of armor.
Artist
Utagawa Toyokuni
(Japanese, 1769 - 1825)
Title
View of the Incense Burning Ceremony from the "Chronicle of Grand Pacification", from the series Newly Published Perspective Pictures
Date
ca. 1800-1810
Medium
Color woodcut
Dimensions
296 x 413 mm Overall
Credit
Bequest of John H. Van Vleck
Accession No.
1980.3184
Classification
Prints
Geography
Japan

Related

By 1925, purchased in Japan by Frank Lloyd Wright; ca. 1926, acquired by The Bank of Wisconsin; 1928, sold to Edward Burr Van Vleck (Madison, WI); 1943, passed through inheritance to Edward’s son, John H. Van Vleck (Madison, WI); 9 January 1980, bequeathed by John H. Van Vleck to the Elvehjem Museum of Art [now called Chazen Museum of Art]

  • Mueller, Laura. "Competition and Collaboration: Japanese Prints of the Utagawa School." Leiden, The Netherlands: Hotei Publishing, 2007. p. 93, no. 52
  • Elvehjem Museum of Art. "The Edward Burr Van Vleck Collection of Japanese Prints." Madison: Elvehjem Museum of Art, 1990. p. 330

  • Utagawa: Masters of the Japanese Print, 1770-1900: Chazen Museum of Art, 11/2/2009–11/26/2009
  • Competition and Collaboration: Japanese Prints of the Utagawa School: Chazen Museum of Art, 11/3/2007–1/6/2008

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