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Heian Court Calligraphy: The Iijima Shunkei Collection

  • Image of "Letter (detail), By Fujiwara no Kozei, Heian period, dated 1020 (Important Cultural Property)"

    Letter (detail), By Fujiwara no Kozei, Heian period, dated 1020 (Important Cultural Property)

    Japanese Gallery (Honkan) Room T1
    October 1, 2019 (Tue) - November 17, 2019 (Sun)

    During the Heian period (794–1192), a Japanese phonetic script based on Chinese characters known as kana became widespread among the ruling class. Kana became a vehicle for the flourishing literary culture of the imperial court, where nobles developed distinct Japanese calligraphy styles on lavishly-decorated paper.

    In this thematic exhibition, we introduce works from the collection of Iijima Shunkei (1906–96), a collector and pioneering scholar of Heian court calligraphy.
     

 Major works in this exhibition
* Works listed below are in the TNM Collection unless otherwise indicated.
 Major works in this exhibition
* Works listed below are in the TNM Collection unless otherwise indicated.
Letter, By Fujiwara no Kozei, Heian period, dated 1020 (Important Cultural Property)
Part of the Collected Poems of Lady Daini no Sanmi (One of the“Hatajiro Fragments”), Attributed to Fujiwara no Kozei, Heian period, 11th–12th century (Important Art Object, , Gift of Mr. Hattori Reijiro and Mrs. Hattori Etsuko)