Woman at a Mirror
Woodblock Print
ca. 1820 (made)
ca. 1820 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Kikukawa Eizan (1787-1867) produced many superior prints of beautiful women. Some scholars have suggested that this series Edo Beauties takes the eleventh-century Japanese novel 'The Tale Of Genji' as its theme, and thus it is surmised that there may have been 54 sheets to it to correspond to the number of chapters in the novel. However, apart from this work, only four prints from the series are known and many may not have been published. The woman depicted here with a side comb in her hair may be about to apply her makeup. On the mirror stand is a packet of famous face powder.
Object details
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| Object type | |
| Titles |
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| Materials and techniques | Colour print from woodblocks |
| Brief description | Print: Kikugawa Eizan: 'Woman at a Mirror', from the series Edo Beauties, Japanese, ca. 1820 |
| Physical description | Some scholars have suggested that this series takes the Tale Of Genji as its theme, and thus it is surmised that there may have been 54 sheets to it to correspond to the number of chapters in the novel. However, apart from this work, only four others are known and many may not have been published. The woman depicted here with a side comb in her hair may be about to apply her makeup. On the mirror stand is a packet of famous face powder. Oban size. Signature: Kikugawa Eizan hitsu. Publisher: Mikawaya Heihachi |
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| Gallery label | Beautiful Women
Images known as ukiyo-e (‘pictures of the floating world’) were immensely popular during the Edo period (1615–1868). Produced in very large numbers, they reflected a world that celebrated hedonism, consumerism and living for the moment. Depictions of beautiful women abounded, especially the glamorous and trend-setting courtesans of Japan’s major cities. These five prints by leading artists show some of the variations in hair-style and kimono design of the time.
(18/09/2015) |
| Credit line | Bequeathed by Mr Paul Shelving |
| Summary | Kikukawa Eizan (1787-1867) produced many superior prints of beautiful women. Some scholars have suggested that this series Edo Beauties takes the eleventh-century Japanese novel 'The Tale Of Genji' as its theme, and thus it is surmised that there may have been 54 sheets to it to correspond to the number of chapters in the novel. However, apart from this work, only four prints from the series are known and many may not have been published. The woman depicted here with a side comb in her hair may be about to apply her makeup. On the mirror stand is a packet of famous face powder. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | E.38-1969 |
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| Record created | December 8, 2002 |
| Record URL |
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