BackNo.66
JUNE 1937
This summary is compiled by Mr. TAKASHI KATSUKI.
PROBLEMS OF THE TEXT OF THE SCROLL-PAINTING "SHIGISAN ENGI"
By SEIICHI SHIMOMISE
The present scroll-painting, Shigisan Engi, as well as that of Genji Monogatari is the most notable work among remaining examples of the kind and studies on these masterpieces have often been published by scholars. However, many other problems surrounding the present scroll-painting have so far been untouched in these studies.
In the present paper the writer's interest is focussed on the question of the text of the scroll-painting. This scroll-painting, depicting events in the life of Saint Myoren who lived in a temple on Mt. Shigi, consists of three scrolls which are owned by Chogoson-ji Temple, Nara. The text of both the second and third scrolls is accompanied by illustrations but the illustrations of the first scroll have no corresponding text. Curiously enough the missing part seems, from the standpoint of the contents, to be included in the first part of the text of the second scroll. The question is, where was the original place of the lost text with its illustrations in the scroll...? The contents of the text are known for it has fortunately been kept in the popular stories entitled the Uji Shui Monogatari.
In the effort of deciding this question the present writer attempts to reconstruct the original text according to the Uji Shui Monogatari (p. 43) in reference to the text of the second and third scrolls. After careful examination he reaches the conclusion that originally the text was attached to the beginning of the first scroll, which almost coincided with the corresponding part of the Uji Shui Monogatari in its contents. Consequently the text becomes exceptionally long seeming to be partly repeated in the first part of the text of the second scroll. These difficulties the writer also tries to solve.
Next he compares the text of the second and third scrolls of Shigisan Engi to the Uji Shui Monogatari especially in reference to the choice of words, vocabulary and contents in general. Pointing out the differences the painstaking studies are extended to another related literary work--the Bandainagon Monogatari. In view of the historical development in their styles he sets the aforementioned literary works in order as follows: the Shigisan Engi, Bandainagon Monogatari and Uji Shui Monogatari.
(The scope of the studies on the subject in the present treatise is quite limited due to their nature and remaining questions concerning the scroll-painting Shigisan Engi must be left to future studies).
A BRONZE STATUETTE OF THE SUIKO PERIOD
By Prof. YUKIO YASHIRO
The bronze statuettes of the Suiko period are highly prized among collectors for their naivety and gracefulness. We should keep in mind the fact, however, that among extant examples are found a good number not only of false works resulting from their comparative ease in forgery, but also of later, imitated works of the same type innocently made in various periods and localities and confused with the original. It is extremely rare to come across really genuine pieces of the kind in private collections.
Under the circumstances the present Suiko statuette (Pls. VII & VIII) in the possession of Count Kabayama is a rare example, whose beauty and simplicity place it in that period beyond any doubt. The most remarkable feature of the thirty-centimeter bronze statuette is the beauty of its gilt surface which impresses us with a mysteriously subdued brightness. The body of the statuette is cast hollow in the inside, and both hands are detachable, in keeping with the technique of the time.
The facial expression is very appealing with its "archaic smile" Judging from the Style the present object seems to belong to the famous group of the forty-eight Buddhist statuettes of Horyu-ji Temple, now dedicated to the Imperial Household. Even among them, however, the extremely smooth and simple treatment peculiar to the present statuette sets it apart as no example of the sort has been found to compare with it.
What is the provenance of the statuette? Among the forty-eight statuettes some are considered to be of Korean origin, and the writer is inclined to attribute the present example to the same origin because of the somewhat intangible and exotic quality inherent in it although no definite conclusion can be made, as Korean examples for comparison are lacking.
Now let us consider the iconographical nature of this statuette, which may be distinguished by the position of the hands. Among sculptural works of the Six Dynasties in China, statuettes like this are known to be either Sakya or Maitreya by the inscriptions which they bear, and more often Sakya. It would not be too far fetched, to call the present statuette Sakya although no Buddha's name can be applied with certainty in this period unless the object is endorsed with definite inscriptions.
PORTRAITS OF POET-SAINT HITOMARO, A HISTORICAL STUDY
By YOSHI SHIRAHATA
The name of Hitomaro, whose poems appear among numerous others in the Mannyoshu-Collection of a Myriad Leaves--which was compiled upon the Imperial command toward the end of the Nara period, has become famous since Tsurayuki, also a poet of fame, lauded him as a poet-saint in the preface of the Kokinshu or Ancient and Modern Collection compiled under the Imperial auspices of Emperor Daigo (897-930). The admiration of people for Hitomaro finally culminated in the drawing of the portrait of the poet-saint and, in the course of time, in the performance of a religious function before the portrait. The festival was observed, according to the old record, in the first year of Gen-ei (1118) for the first time. This original portrait, unfortunately, does not remain today but we can surmise the general composition of the portrait by means of an episode in the Jukkunsho, a literary work of the thirteenth century. This account relates that there was a governor by the name of Kanefusa who was an ardent follower of Hitomaro and an assiduous student of poetry. Kanefusa dreamed one evening of an old man in meditation, attired in cap and gown, holding a sheet of paper in the left hand and a brush in the right hand; the old man gave his name as Hitomaro in answer to Kanefusa's question. The next morning Kanefusa in great joy asked an artist to draw a portrait of the poet-saint as he, Kanefusa, had seen it in the dream, and upon its completion a religious service was held by the notables before the portrait in honor of the poet-saint.
Finally, the ceremony became quite popular in the Kamakura and Ashikaga periods and first class artists were employed to make the portraits although none of them produced in the former period remains today. Therefore, no attempt can be made to compare these works to those of the preceding period which are also entirely lost.
Aside from the traditional works, however, we find a portrait of the poet-saint, Hitomaro, in the "Portraits of Thirty-six Poetical Geniuses" which were formerly in the private collection of Marquis Satake. Although they are attributed to the famous artist Nobuzane the portrait of Hitomaro resembles in many respects that original painting which portrays Kanefusa's dream of Hitomaro although it was not painted for the same religious purpose. The writer, herewith, surmises that this pottrait may be considered the closest example to the original. The remaining examples of the Ashikaga period are not few in number but their artistic quality has been much deteriorated. However, the close resemblance of that in the "Portraits of Thirty-six Poetical Geniuses" to the original portrait leads us to imagine that the portraits of Hitomaro produced during the Kamakura and Ashikaga periods were the copies of the original one painted at the request of Kanefusa.
Beside this supposed prototype of the portrait of Hitomaro there were known three different types of portraits of the same poet-saint produced in the Ashikaga period--(1) that which is called the Iwaya type in which Hitomaro appears sitting on the fur of a tiger; (ii) that in which he is dressed in Chinese costume (fig., p. 28); (iii) that in which the posture of the sitter is much modified and in which both brush and paper, so common to all other portrait-types, are absent. Judging from the involved styles these portraits are conceived to have been painted some time after the original work of the end of the Kamakura period. So far as the sitter's posture of meditation is concerned even those executed in the modified style are thought to have been influenced by the original portrait made at the order of Kanefusa.
After the Tokugawa period the time-honored religious service on behalf of Hitomaro gradually waned but the poet-saint remained a popular subject and his portrait was attempted by many artists, reflecting the tastes of the succeeding times.
WORKS BY LITTLE KNOWN PAINTERS (PART II)
With Comments By HAJIME WATANABE
FAN-SHAPED PAINTINGS MOUNTED AS FOUR PAIRS OF SIX-FOLD SCREENS OF NANZEN-JI TEMPLE, KYOTO.
The present screens are old examples of this fan-shaped type and two hundred and forty paintings are mounted. On these paintings the numerous seals of the different artists who belonged to the famous Kano school are shown, but most of the seals still remain unidentified. It was this which caused the attention of scholars to be drawn to the screens- Regarding the present screens introductory studies have been published in the form of catalogues of which one was issued by the Imperial Household Museum of Tokyo where half of the whole number of screens was put on view in 1935, and Mr. Kisaku Tanaka of our Institute conducted studies on screens of this kind in the Bijutsu Kenkyu, No. LI, under the title of "On the Screens Decorated with Pictures in the Shape of a Fan."
The richness in variety in the subject matter adopted in the present screens covers the old anecdote, and themes of genre, landscape, religious portrait, flower and bird. The same is also true of the style and technique employed, that is to say, seven paintings in Yamato-e, among the rest one hundred and thirty-eight in rich color and ninty-five in ink. Among them thirty-seven works bear eulogistic poems by fifteen Zen priests of fame ranging between the Kyoroku and Genna eras (1528-1623). Accordingly these screens are considered to have been mostly executed during that time-nearly a whole century.
As a matter of fact, these paintings were originally made as fans and after having been used for that purpose they were mounted as screens. Therefore, not only the pictures but also the seals are badly worn and only about twenty-five seals of all those found on the two huudred and forty pictures are considered by the present commentator to be worthy of introducing as materials for the study of the present fan-shaped screens. The seals found on the screens amount to about fifty different kinds and many of them are not recorded even in the well-known books on paintings and seals; most of the seals reproduced are naturally shown much clearer than those found on the actual paintings.
Among repetitions of the same seals which appear on the different pictures on the screens Motonobu's and Naonobu's appear as many as ten times and several others occur three or four times. However, the seals are not entirely authentic in regard to the pictures because some seals seem questionable; if the seals, on the other hand, were genuine it is presupposed that the pictures would sometimes change hands.
These difficulties are very likely to be found in any example like the present one in which numerous pictures were mounted together in a certain length of time and it is, as a matter of fact, impossible to expect them to be genuine works without exception.
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES
Pl. I (Color Plate)-III Shigisan Engi.
Color on paper. Mounted as scroll.
Height: 31 cm., each.
Width: First scroll called Tobikura-no-maki; 870.90 cm.
Second stroll called Kaji-no-maki; 1269.16 cm.
Third scroll called Niko-no-maki; 1415.21 cm.
Chogoson-ji Temple, Nara.
(See the article by Seiichi Shimomise)
Pl. IV Portrait of Daimin-kokushi.
Color on silk. Mounted as kakemono.
Height: 107.0 cm.; width: 40.8 cm.
Nanzen-ji Temple, Kyoto.
Explanation by Kisaku Tanaka.
Daimin-kokushi (d. 1291), well known as the founder of Nanzen-ji Temple, was also called Fumon Mukan. Dressed in a brownish gown with a greenish stole embellished with arabesque in gold, he is portrayed in the usual posture for this kind of picture but extremely delicate touches in his face give life to the portrait. The general color scheme is far from striking--it seems even flat--but his personal characteristics are well represented.
The writer of the eulogistic poem which is seen on the upper part of the present picture is Priest Jikin, who also lived in Nanzen-ji Temple and became an admirer of Daimin-kokushi. His death occured in 1357 and the eulogistic poem is believed to have been written in his later years. In the opinion of the present exponent, therefore, this picture may have been done after the old example although the latter was not made from life.
The present portrait should also be remembered as the oldest portrait of Daimin-kokushi among those remaining today.
Pl. V Eagle, by Nichokuan (Japanese, XVII century).
Height: 94.6 cm.; width: 40.8 cm.
Collection of Mr. Chuzaburo Ogino, Tokyo.
Explanation by Hajime Watanabe.
Paintings by Nichokuan are not necessarily rare but of those bearing the eulogistic poem few are known, the present "Eagle" being one example among the few. Judging from both the signature and seal the writer of the poem is considered to be Priest Toin Gensho who took the place of the two hundred and thirty-fifth head priest of Tofuku-ji Temple, Kyoto, in the ninth year of Genna (1623).
Of the life of Nichokuan our present knowledge is so limited that we cannot speak with any positive degree of accuracy but the present portrait in which the traditional style of the artist's family is well illustrated is considered a product, according to the eulogistic poem, from the prime of the artist's life.
Pl. VI Azalea, by Korin (Japanese, 1658-1716).
Slight color on silk. Mounted as kakemono.
Height: 38.5 cm.; width: 60.3 cm.
Collection of Baron Ino Dan, Tokyo.
Explanation by Tokuzo Masaki.
This is a well-known piece of work by Korin. The beauty of azalea is represented here in the simplest technique in which probably no one else but the famous Korin was as successful. Red, white, blue and green lend variety in the color employed over which ink is predominant. Furthermore, the composition is quite natural as we see no artificial element.
The present work dates after the fourteenth year of Genroku (1701) when Korin was appointed to the ecclesiastical rank Hokkyo, which is written with his signature (fig., p. 37) in the lower right-hand corner, in recognition of his distinguished ability as an artist at the age of forty-three. And the interpreter, in view of the matured style of the signature, inclines to set the date toward the close of his life.
Pl.VII & VIII Statuette of Buddha.
Bronze. Height: 30 cm.
Collection of Count Ayske Kabayama, Tokyo.
(See the article by Prof. Yukio Yashiro)
Pl. IX Portrait of Hitomaro.
Color on silk. Mounted as kakemono.
Height: 81.6 cm.; width: 36.0 cm.
Collection of Mr. Risuke Saito, Tokyo.
(See the article by Yoshi Shirahata)
Pl. X-XIV Fan-Shaped Paintings.
Ink or color on paper.
Details from four pairs of six-fold screens.
Nanzen-ji Temple, Kyoto.
(See the article by Hajime Watanabe)