Picture of Retrieving the Jewel from the Dragon King's Palace (Ryugu tamatori no zu) [along right margin]

Artist Nishimura, Shigenaga (Japanese, about 1697–1758)

Dateabout 1740

Mediumwoodblock print; ink and hand-applied color on paper; beni-e

Dimensions29.2 x 43.8 cm (11 1/2 x 17 1/4 in.)

ClassificationsPrints

Markings[Imprint originally probably along left margin has been trimmed off]

Credit LineJohn Chandler Bancroft Collection

Terms

Object number1901.67

DescriptionYoko oban (horizontal oban)
Label TextThis uki-e (perspective picture) print illustrates the most dramatic episode from the famous Tamatori monogatari, "The Tale of the Taking of the Jewel." This story, also known as Taishokan after the central character, the Taishokan Fujiwara no Kamatari, enjoyed great popularity throughout the Tokugawa Period. The Dragon King had captured a jewel intended for Kamatari. The jewel enclosed an image of the Buddha and was to have been installed in the temple Kofuku-ji in Nara. Kamatari, meanwhile, had fallen in love with a woman diver (ama) and had a son by her. Determined to recover the jewel he sought her help. Here the upper parts of the underwater palace of the Dragon King (Ryu-jin) are depicted visible above the surface of the sea. The ama has snuck inside the enclosing walls of the palace and has retrieved th

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