The Monkey King Sun Wukong

Object Details

• Artist

  Kubo Shunman 窪俊満 (1757-1820)

• Label

  The monkey king, Sun Wukong (Japanese, Son Goku), became a popular character in Japan when the Chinese novel Journey to the West (Chinese, Xiyou ji; Japanese, Saiyvki) was translated and published during the Edo period. Accompanying the monk Tripitaka on his journey to India to acquire sutras (sacred texts), Sun Wukong battles a wide range of demons, goblins, enchantresses, and monsters. This surimono, which is also a calendar print for the "monkey" year 1812, shows the monkey king standing on a cloud that can instantly transport him over great distances. In his hand is an iron weapon that can shrink and fit behind his ear. He is also able to transform his fur into a troop of monkeys, shown below, who are cleverly arranged to indicate the long and short months of the year. Two poems read:

  As spring arrives

  large and small blossoms

  of plum burst forth,

  while monkeys appear

  in a garden of delights.

  -Noki no Shiraume

  Translation of poems by John T. Carpente

• 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

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1700s, 1710s, 1720s, 1770s, 1780s, 1790s, 1730s, 1740s, 1750s, 1760s, 1800s, 1810s, 1820s, 1830s, 1610s, 1650s, 1640s, 1630s, 1620s, 1690s, 1840s, 1680s, 1850s, 1670s, 1860s, 1660s

• Name

  Kubo, Shunman

• Place

  Japan

• Topic

  Surimono, Art, Animals, King, Edo period, Japan, (1600 - 1868), Cloud, Japanese Art, Anne van Biema collection, Monkeys, Poetry

• Culture

  Japanese

• Object Type

  Prints