Scenes from the life of the Ming Huang Emperor and Yang Guifei (one of a pair with F1901.20)
date: label: Date
content: late 16th-early 17th century
label: Period
content: Momoyama period
name: label: Artist
content: Kano Mitsunobu (ca. 1565-1608)
notes: label: School/Tradition
content: Kano
label: Label
content: The scenes on these screens are based on a Chinese poem, "Song of Everlasting Sorrow," by Bo Juyi (772-846). The poem, which tells the tragic story of Tang dynasty emperor Ming Huang (Xuanzong) and his love for his concubine Yang Guifei, was known in Japan since the tenth century. The story is told in episodes beginning in the lower right corner of the left screen and moving in a circular, counterclockwise direction. At the top of the left screen, a party is held as the An Lushan rebellion begins; Yang Guifei perished in the uprising. In the upper right of the right screen, the emperor is alone after the uprising ends.
label: Provenance
content: To 1901
label: Provenance
content: Ernest Francisco Fenollosa (1853-1908), New York, NY, and Spring Hill, AL, to 1901 [1]
label: Provenance
content: From 1901 to 1919
label: Provenance
content: Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Ernest Francisco Fenollosa in 1901 [2]
label: Provenance
content: From 1920
label: Provenance
content: Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
label: Provenance
content: Notes:
label: Provenance
content: [1] See Original Screen List, S.I 42, L. 48, pg. 10, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
label: Provenance
content: [2] See note 1.
label: Provenance
content: [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.
label: Collection
content: Freer Gallery of Art Collection
label: Exhibition History
content: Japanese Screens (February 6 to August 19, 2013)
label: Exhibition History
content: Japanese Screens (May 9, 1993 to November 13, 1995)
label: Exhibition History
content: Japanese Screens (February 11, 1983 to July 19, 1988)
label: Exhibition History
content: Japanese Art—Painted Screens (August 18, 1967 to May 2, 1973)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Ernest Francisco Fenollosa (1853-1908) (C.L. Freer source)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
place: label: Origin
content: Japan
topic: label: Topic
content: Momoyama period (1573 - 1615)
label: Topic
content: concubine
label: Topic
content: Japan
label: Topic
content: emperor
label: Topic
content: Japanese Art
label: Topic
content: Charles Lang Freer collection
setName: label: Related Online Resources
content: Google Arts & Culture
label: See more items in
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Charles Lang Freer
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: F1901.21
objectType: label: Type
content: Painting
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: CC0
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: Ink, color and gold on paper
label: Dimensions
content: H x W: 173.8 x 381.8 cm (68 7/16 x 150 5/16 in)