Futon Cover
late 19th century-early 20th century (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The futon is the traditional form of Japanese bedding and consists of a mattress and cover both stuffed with raw cotton. This futon cover was probably part of a bride's trousseau, and would have been used on the wedding night. Its auspicious motif, that of a hôô bird, was designed to bring good fortune to the couple in their new life together. The hôô, translated as a phoenix in English although it bears little relation to its western equivalent, represents peace and prosperity. This mythical bird is the female counterpart of the dragon, and its many feathers represent the virtues of truthfulness, propriety, righteousness, benevolence and sincerity. It is generally depicted, as here, with a paulownia tree, which, according to legend, is the only plant on which the bird will sit.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Plain weave cotton, with resist-dyed decoration |
| Brief description | Futonji, plain weave cotton with tsutsugaki freehand paste-resist decoration, Japan, late 19th-early 20th century |
| Physical description | Futon cover (futonji) of stiff plain weave cotton consisting of four loom widths seamed together vertically. The large-scale design of a hōō bird (phoenix) bird flying above a rock and paulownia branches executed in the tsutsugaki (tube-drawing) resist-dyeing technique. |
| Dimensions |
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| Styles | |
| Object history | Registered File number 1984/2209. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | The futon is the traditional form of Japanese bedding and consists of a mattress and cover both stuffed with raw cotton. This futon cover was probably part of a bride's trousseau, and would have been used on the wedding night. Its auspicious motif, that of a hôô bird, was designed to bring good fortune to the couple in their new life together. The hôô, translated as a phoenix in English although it bears little relation to its western equivalent, represents peace and prosperity. This mythical bird is the female counterpart of the dragon, and its many feathers represent the virtues of truthfulness, propriety, righteousness, benevolence and sincerity. It is generally depicted, as here, with a paulownia tree, which, according to legend, is the only plant on which the bird will sit. |
| Bibliographic reference | Jackson, Anna, Japanese Country Textiles, London: V&A Publications, 1997, page 40, fig. 21 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | FE.71-1984 |
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| Record created | February 12, 2000 |
| Record URL |
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