No. 5: Women Feeding the Silkworms with Whole Mulberry Leaves

Artist Kitagawa Utamaro I 喜多川歌麿 (Japanese, early 1750s–1806)

Dateabout 1798–1800

Mediumwoodblock print; ink and color on paper

DimensionsVertical ōban: 38.1 x 25.4 cm (15 x 10 in.)

ClassificationsPrints

Credit LineJohn Chandler Bancroft Collection

Terms

Japanese Print

Object number1901.59.2413

Label TextThis print belongs to a series of five works that collectively portray the process of sericulture: the production of raw silk by the means of raising silkworms. Like many Japanese art forms, it originated in China, and over time developed a distinct national character. By the Edo period (1603-1868), the process was dominated by women. Here, Utamaro I renders women (who embody the beauty standards of his time) feeding mulberry leaves to silkworms in order to promote their growth. The extensive use of purple in their garments and surroundings represents a style of printing known as murasaki-e, in which the color typically dominates an otherwise limited palette.

On View

Not on view