Accession Number
1963/2.59

Title
Mt. Fuji in Autumn

Artist(s)
Hanabusa Itchô

Object Creation Date
early 18th century

Medium & Support
hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper

Dimensions
12 15/16 in x 20 1/2 in (32.86 cm x 52.07 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Mr. Harold Phillip Stern for the James Marshall Plumer Memorial Collection

Label copy

Hanabusa Itchō
Japan, 1652–1724
Mt. Fuji in Autumn
Edo period (1615–1868)
Early 18th century
Hanging scroll, ink and light color on paper
Gift of Mr. Harold Phillip Stern for the
James Marshall Plumer Memorial Collection, 1963/2.59

Like Sakai Hōitsu (whose painting of Mount Fuji is also on display in this gallery), Itchō trained in the prestigious Kanō School style of painting endorsed by the ruling military class, though he later departed from its conventions to produce works that reflected the aesthetic sensibilities of the literati (professional and amateur artists who modeled themselves after Chinese scholar-artists) and scenes of everyday life in the capital city of Edo (present-day Tokyo). In this melancholy image a lone male deer stands among red autumn leaves in a scene dimly lit by a crescent moon. It is likely that Itchō produced this image with a celebrated eighth-century poem by Sarumaru in mind, though he located the scene in the mountains visible from Edo, including Mount Fuji:

When I hear the voice
of the stag crying for his mate
stepping through the fallen leaves
deep in the mountains—then is the time that autumn is saddest.

(translation by Joshua S. Mostow)

Primary Object Classification
Painting

Primary Object Type
hanging scroll

Additional Object Classification(s)
Painting

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
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Keywords
Japan
Mount Fuji
clouds
deer
fall
hanging scroll
moons
mountains
rivers
trees