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Each of the four gospels in this book opens on a page with brilliantly illuminated borders depicting the author of the text as well as birds—principally peacocks, symbols of the immortality of the soul—and fountains, representing the fountain of life and the salvation of the soul. This volume consists of 428 leaves with texts in Greek. Its level of sophistication suggests that it was probably written and decorated in a monastery in Constantinople.
Byzantium, Constantinople
ink, tempera, and gold on vellum; leather binding
Sheet: 28 x 23 cm (11 x 9 1/16 in.)
Did you know...
Gospel books were carried in procession through Byzantine churches.
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Iran, Vicinity of Mashhad (Baluchistan), 20th century
senna knot: wool, cotton, and camel hair
Overall: 116.2 x 69.8 cm (45 3/4 x 27 1/2 in.)
Florence and Charles Abel Oriental Rug Collection
While the 11th century <em>Tale of Genji </em>is universally regarded as Japan's literary masterpiece, the source for visual imagery in Japanese culture is rivaled by another literary classic, the <em>Tales of Ise</em>. A 10th century anthology of poems interspersed with commentary, the Ise portrays the emotional and geographical journey of a courtier from the capital (Kyoto) into the countryside and beyond. The poems describe features of the natural, untamed terrain, linking them to the rather melancholy state of the traveler. <br><br>Since the <em>Tales of Ise </em>was—and remains today—well read by educated Japanese, a person viewing these folding screens would immediately recognize its subject, organized as a series of discrete scenes read from right to left. Neither a signature nor a seal identifies the artist, but judging from related paintings, the work can be ascribed to an artist working in Kyoto during the first quarter of the 17th century in the manner of the painter Iwasa Matabei (1578–1650). This type of historical narrative composition became quite popular around 1600 among patrons favoring a distinctly Japanese style of painting which employed rich mineral pigments and a liberal use of gold.
Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)
Pair of six-panel folding screens; ink, color, and gold on gilded paper
Painting only: 95.2 x 276 cm (37 1/2 x 108 11/16 in.); Overall: 109.3 x 258.9 cm (43 1/16 x 101 15/16 in.)
Did you know...
Scenes appear amid golden clouds augmented by raised designs formed of a pigment made from crushed shells (<em>gofun</em>). The technique is called <em>moriage</em>, literally “mounding” the pigment.
John L. Severance Fund
The Cleveland cup and its counterpart from the imperial collection in the Beijing Palace Museum epitomize products of Suzhou jade masters in material, refinement, and polish. During the Qing dynasty, Suzhou’s best products were sent north to the capital. Those that met imperial approval were sometimes graced with Qianlong’s mark, added by calligraphers and jade workers at court. The lack of a Qianlong mark on the Cleveland cup suggests that it might not have reached the court, perhaps having found a collector among the merchant circles of the Suzhou-Jiangnan region, where its possession would have signaled its owners’ affluence, good taste, and knowledge of antique objects. Previously dated to the Yuan dynasty (1271–1368), new scholarship dates this cup to the Qing period.
China, Qing dynasty (1644–1911), Qianlong period (1736–95)
Pale greenish-white jade
Diameter of mouth: 10.3 cm (4 1/16 in.); Overall: 6.5 cm (2 9/16 in.); width with handles: 16 cm (6 5/16 in.)
Did you know...
Two female immortals serve as handles, while a Daoist procession with immortals, musicians, and attendants winds around the body of the cup.
Anonymous Gift
At the right of the tsuba is a humble hut. In the hut, a man holds a book near the window. This is the legendary Chinese scholar Shoko. He read by moonlight. The moon and clouds are in the upper left of the tsuba. On the reverse is a waterfall under a pine tree.
Japanese
2 1/2 in. (6.3 cm)
medium: shibuichi, gold
culture: Japanese
Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Japanese
H: 9 1/8 x W: 10 1/2 in. (23.2 x 26.6 cm)
medium: ink and colors on silk and paper
culture: Japanese
Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest (?) [accessioned 1991].
The depiction of the Virgin and Child in Glory within an aureole (large almond-shaped halo) of roses evoked for contemporaries both a well-known image from the book of Revelation interpreted as the Virgin's triumph over evil and the rosary. The ring at the top is for a chain, while that at the bottom is for a pendant pearl.
1/2 in. (1.2 cm)
medium: partially gilded silver
Walters Art Museum, 1970, by purchase.
The Virgin's mantle falls in the elegant, linear folds of Indian sculpture. The native style and facial features are smoothly adapted to the Christian apocalyptic iconography of the Virgin, who is represented standing on a crescent moon. With little reference to the body beneath the robes, her physical energy is directed into the peace and serenity of prayer. Native and European vocabularies are in dialogue. Christianity came with the Portuguese in 1505. Known to Europeans in the 17th century as Ceylon, the island became officially known as Sri Lanka in 1972.
H: 10 1/8 in. (25.7 cm)
medium: ivory, carved, gilded and painted
Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
Once read and copied by girls at New Year’s celebrations and included in dowries, <em>The Saltmaker’s Story</em> is a rags-to-riches tale in which daughters are gifts from the gods. Despite his simple outlook, the main character progresses from humble roots as an associate at Kashima Shrine to the elite status of grandfather of the emperor through the intervention of the Kashima deity. <em>The Saltmaker’s Story</em> is traditionally presented in a set of three scrolls, but the text of this set has been removed by a previous owner, who remounted the illustrations as a pair.
Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)
Pair of handscrolls; ink, color, and gold on paper
Overall: 17.7 x 917.5 cm (6 15/16 x 361 1/4 in.)
Did you know...
These handscrolls originally alternated text and painting, but the texts were removed.
John L. Severance Fund