File:(Shunka shuto) Shiki no nagame (春夏秋冬) 色の詠 (In Praise of Love (in the Four Seasons)) (BM 1981,0813,0.1.1 036).jpg
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Summary
[edit](Shunka shuto) Shiki no nagame (春夏秋冬) 色の詠 (In Praise of Love (in the Four Seasons)) ( ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Title |
(Shunka shuto) Shiki no nagame (春夏秋冬) 色の詠 (In Praise of Love (in the Four Seasons)) |
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Description |
English: Illustrated book. Vol. 1 of four volumes. Erotic scenes. Woodblock-printed. |
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Date |
between 1827 and 1829 date QS:P571,+1827-00-00T00:00:00Z/8,P1319,+1827-00-00T00:00:00Z/9,P1326,+1829-00-00T00:00:00Z/9 |
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Medium | paper | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Dimensions |
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Collection |
institution QS:P195,Q6373 |
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Current location |
Asia |
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Accession number |
1981,0813,0.1.1 |
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Notes | A well-dressed young man has taken an antique shunga handscroll painting of courtiers making love from its luxurious lacquered storage box and purple silk wrapping, and now encourages his female companion to view it with him. Beside him is an equally luxurious lacquered smoking set, with three love letters tucked into the top. Equally smartly dressed in a beautiful robe with long, hanging sleeves typically worn by unmarried young women, she is reluctant to view the scroll and pulls away, raising her hand in its sleeve to her face in a gesture of shyness or embarrassment. There is no text or story to otherwise explain this, the opening illustration in a four-volume work, illustrated by Kunisada. How are we to interpret it? Are we made complicit in the man’s seduction strategy? Or is this an accepted way for him to pay court to a well brought-up young woman? Certainly the fine finish of the heirloom scroll with its sprinklings of gold in the background, similar to several paintings displayed in this exhibition (Clark et al 2013, cat. 17), and the fact that it features aristocrats, promotes the idea that sexual dalliance is sanctioned by tradition and wealth. Historical sources tell us that shunga paintings and books formed part of the trousseau of a bride to prepare her for sex with her new husband (see Clark et al 2013, pp. 296–9). Within the fantasy world of shunga itself, couples regularly use shunga paintings and books in foreplay or as a guide to lovemaking positions. So shall we look? Or should we turn away? [TC] | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Source/Photographer | https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1981-0813-0-1-1 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Permission (Reusing this file) |
© The Trustees of the British Museum, released as CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Other versions |
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Licensing
[edit]This image is in the public domain because it is a mere mechanical scan or photocopy of a public domain original, or – from the available evidence – is so similar to such a scan or photocopy that no copyright protection can be expected to arise. The original itself is in the public domain for the following reason:
This tag is designed for use where there may be a need to assert that any enhancements (eg brightness, contrast, colour-matching, sharpening) are in themselves insufficiently creative to generate a new copyright. It can be used where it is unknown whether any enhancements have been made, as well as when the enhancements are clear but insufficient. For known raw unenhanced scans you can use an appropriate {{PD-old}} tag instead. For usage, see Commons:When to use the PD-scan tag. Note: This tag applies to scans and photocopies only. For photographs of public domain originals taken from afar, {{PD-Art}} may be applicable. See Commons:When to use the PD-Art tag. |
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current | 10:19, 11 May 2020 | 1,600 × 1,126 (333 KB) | Copyfraud (talk | contribs) | British Museum public domain uploads (Copyfraud/BM) Eroticism in the British Museum 1827 image 37 of 132 #188/1,471 |
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