Musashi Plain Moon from the series One Hundred Aspects of the Moon (Tsuki hyakushi) 「むさしのゝ月」　『月百姿』

Object Details

• Artist

  Tsukioka Yoshitoshi 月岡芳年 (1839-1892)

• Label

  Foxes have both benevolent and malevolent roles in Japanese legends and folklore. In this serene and haunting image, a fox turns in a strikingly anthropomorphic pose to gaze at her reflection by the light of the full moon. This image on the plain of Musashi, from Yoshitoshi's famous series, One Hundred Aspects of the Moon (Tsuki hyakushi), recalls a traditional Japanese belief that the wide plain near Edo was inhabited by foxes who gathered on New Year's Eve at a tree near the Oji Inari Shrine, where they served as messengers to its deity, the protector of rice cultivation. Farmers looked for the flames emitted by the foxes to judge the probability of good harvests in the coming year.

• Collection

  National Museum of Asian Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  The Life of Animals in Japanese Art (May 18 to August 18, 2019)

  Masterful Illusions: Japanese Prints from the Anne van Biema Collection (September 15, 2002 to January 9, 2003)

• Origin

  Japan

• Credit Line

  The Anne van Biema Collection

• Type

  Print

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1890s

• Name

  Tsukioka, Yoshitoshi

• Place

  Japan

• Topic

  Art, Animals, Moon, Oban, Outer space, Japanese Art, Anne van Biema collection, Meiji era (1868 - 1912)

• Culture

  Japanese

• Object Type

  Prints