One Hundred Women Classified According to their Rank, 1729
Nishikawa Sukenobuexpand_more
Woodblock printed book; ink on paperexpand_more
Mary Griggs Burke Collection, Gift of the Mary and Jackson Burke Foundationexpand_more 2015.79.216
Not on Viewexpand_more
In this handscroll, Nishikawa Sukenobu depicted women of varying vocations and ranks in their daily dress. Beginning with an empress and her servants, his book offers a glimpse into the range of roles women played in Edo-period Japan. Throughout the handscroll, he shows women employing literacy in their work: a poet composes a poem; a doctor measures out medication doses while consulting a book; a scribe holds her brush at the ready.
This work is a rare example of how the content of printed books could circulate: this work consists of pages from a printed book, which were hand copied and bound as a book, that was then remounted as a handscroll. The practice of copying books by hand was a way for readers who could not, for some reason, obtain the printed original. Hand-copied versions of texts are more common, while hand-copied illustrated books, such as the pages in this handscroll, are relatively uncommon. A note at the end of the handscroll indicates that the copying was done in 1729, six years after the publication of the original book.
Details
- Title
- One Hundred Women Classified According to their Rank
- Artist Life
- 1671 - 1750
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2015.79.216
- Catalogue Raisonne
- Murase, Art through a Lifetime, no. 480
- Curator Approved
This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
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