Thirty-Six Beauties, Good and Evil (Zen'aku sanjūroku bijin): Tamamono Mae 「玉藻の前」 『善悪三十六美人』

Object Details

• Artist

  Toyohara Kunichika 豊原国周 (1835-1900)

• Label

  Orange rays radiate from the evil court lady, Tamamo no Mae, as she raises an open fan. This powerful image represents a manifestation in human form of a supernatural, nine-tailed fox that transformed itself repeatedly into beautiful women and enchanted the emperors of India, China, and Japan. According to a Japanese legend set in the Heian period (794-1185), Tamamo no Mae served at the imperial court where she practiced her evil until she was stopped by the power of a Buddhist priest. The light that appeared around her head at night betrayed her supernatural power. Legends of Tamamo no Mae were well known to nineteenth-century Japanese audiences through puppet plays, illustrated novels, and kabuki plays.

• Collection

  National Museum of Asian Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  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

  1870s

• Name

  Toyohara, Kunichika

• Place

  Japan

• Topic

  Fans, Art, Oban, Japanese Art, Anne van Biema collection, Meiji era (1868 - 1912), Woman, Bijinga

• Culture

  Japanese

• Object Type

  Prints