- Provenance
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To 1904
Michael Tomkinson (1841-1921), Kidderminster, England, to 1904 [1]From 1904 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Michael Tomkinson in 1904 [2]From 1920
Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]Notes:
[1] See Original Kakemono Reserved List, R. 397, pg. 10, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
[2] See note 1.
[3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.
- Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)
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Michael Tomkinson (C.L. Freer source) 1841-1921
Charles Lang Freer 1854-1919
- Label
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The "Three Dusks" or "Three Evening Poems" is a famous group of three poems by three different authors. The poems are recorded in the imperial poetry anthology Shin kokinshu, compiled in the early thirteenth century. The poem below, composed by the Buddhist monk Saigyo (1118-1190), is inscribed on this painting by Kano Tan'yu, one of the leading artists of the seventeenth century.
While denying his heart,
Even a priest must feel his body knows
The depth of a sad beauty:
From a marsh at autumn twilight
Snipes that rise and wing away.
Using only the palest tones of ink and tints of translucent color, Tan'yu has created a subtle and indefinite pictorial image that echoes the mood of the poem. The refined and elegant calligraphy of the inscription is attributed to Imperial Prince Ryosho (1622-1693), who became a Buddhist monk in 1634.
Translation by Robert H. Brower and Earl Miner, Japanese Court Poetry (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1961)
- Collection Area(s)
- Japanese Art
- Web Resources
- Google Cultural Institute
- CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)
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This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.
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CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)
This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.
Usage Conditions Apply
There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.
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International Image Interoperability Framework
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