Amaterasu Ōmikami
Artist
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi 月岡 芳年
(Japanese, 1839–1892)
DateApril 29th, 1879
Mediumwoodblock print; ink, color, mica, and embossing on paper
Dimensions36.5 x 75.3 cm (oban)
ClassificationsPrints
Credit LineHarriet B. Bancroft Fund
Object number1985.38
DescriptionAccording to Japan’s creation myth, the Sun Goddess Amaterasu is the divine progenitor of the Japanese Imperial line. In one episode, she took shelter in a cave, plunging the world into unrelenting darkness. Ame no Uzume, the goddess of dawn and revelry, performed a risqué dance outside the cave, causing enough commotion that Amaterasu was persuaded to come out. The borders present the image as though they were in the traditional narrative format of a Japanese handscroll. Images like this one cemented belief in the divine ancestry of the Imperial family and became increasingly popular as nationalistic propaganda during the Meiji period (1868–1912).Label TextAccording to Japan’s creation myth, the Sun Goddess Amaterasu is the divine progenitor of the Japanese Imperial line. In one episode, she took shelter in a cave, plunging the world into unrelenting darkness. Ame no Uzume, the goddess of dawn and revelry, performed a risqué dance outside the cave, causing enough commotion that Amaterasu was persuaded to come out. The borders present the image as though they were in the traditional narrative format of a Japanese handscroll. Images like this one cemented belief in the divine ancestry of the Imperial family and became increasingly popular as nationalistic propaganda during the Meiji period (1868–1912).ProvenanceMuseum purchase from Robin Kennedy, London.
On View
Not on view
883–859 BCE
