Masks and Costumes of the Noh Play Utou
-
Noh Mask: Yase Otoko, With branded mark “Kodama Ōmi”Passed down by the Konparu Troupe, Edo period, 17th–18th century (Important Cultural Property)
Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room 9
April 23, 2024 (Tue) - June 23, 2024 (Sun)The noh play Utou is a story about the suffering of a hunter in the afterlife. The first act introduces the hunter, who makes his living by hunting baby birds. He wears an asakurajō mask and a light mizugoromo costume, which is typically used for working-class roles.
In the second act, the hunter appears as a ghost with a frightful yase otoko mask. This mask represents his tragic fate in the afterlife, which he suffers because he had taken many lives of baby birds. This exhibition explores the story’s development through costumes and masks feauturing contrasting decoration and facial expressions.
| Designation | Name | Creation/ Excavation/ Provenance |
Period | Acquisition/ Ownership/ Accession Number |
CMT | ||
| Highlight | Important Cultural Property | Noh Mask: "Yase Otoko" | With branded mark “Kodama Ōmi”, Passed down by the Konparu Troupe | Edo period, 17th–18th century | C-1541 | ||
| Highlight | Noh Costume ("Atsuita") with Bamboo and Butterflies | Edo period, 18th century | I-2041 | ||||
| Highlight | "Utou" from "Illustrated Scenes from Noh and Kyōgen Plays" | Artist unknown | Edo period, 18th century | A-10185-1 |