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Translation of antique image and kanji on c1800 Japanese painting

ViniVidiDejaVu

VeniVidiDejaVu
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Greetings! My mother brought this painting home from a trip to Tokyo around 1980. She was told by the shopkeeper it was created around 1800 AD. I would like to know what the image represents. To my inexperienced eye the image appears to be of a geisha sitting on a black bench, black hair streaming down, next to an array of rugs or material.
Also, I would like to know what the image represents. The matting has cut off some of the kanji, but is it possible to translate? My mom has passed on, and I would greatly like to know what this image represents. The back of the painting was covered with brown framing paper when it was framed, but I will remove that paper if it is advisable to see any information on the back of the image.






Thank you in advance for your assistance!
Mike
 
Very difficult to decipher this handwritten type of script. I can't help too much, other than to say that the last two kanji on the right hand side of the image (bottom two kanji) are Shimotsuke (下野） which is an old term for a location north of Tokyo. Could also be Shimono (下野) which has no particular meaning other than possibly being someone's last name, but it would be a bit of a random thing to write on a print like this.

The woman wouldn't be a geisha. She would likely be a court lady dressed in multi-layered kimono - or more likely she would be an edo-period artists attempt at a classical lady of the court. The 12-layered kimono was considered the height of sartorial refinement. She would be leaning against a black-lacquered armrest, common in earlier times. My guess would be that it might be a representation of a story from The Tale of Genji, as this is a common theme in prints. But it's just a wild guess.
 
Thank you very much for bringing this more into focus for me. So the flowing material to her right is a part of her garment; I mistook it for some sort of bedding, carpetry, or something. I sincerely appreciate your prompt and considered reply!

Mike
 
The line in the right end is the name of a poet 後鳥羽院下野 "Gotoba no In no Shimotuke", as Majestic-san deduced correctly, so what is written on it must be one of her poems. I couldn't identify it, though.

後鳥羽院下野 - Wikipedia
(all in Japanese)
 
Last edited:

Thank you again! I always wondered what the subject of the painting was. I tried Google Translate on the Wikipedia site, but was treated to an illogical splattering of English words.
 
And maybe the poem written in the print is this one

「心していたくななきそきり、すかことかましき老のねさめに」

But I'm not convinced this is the right one.... and translating this is beyond my level.
 
YOU GOT IT!!

YOU GOT IT!!

宝治百首 秋 暁虫 No.01559 （後鳥羽院）下野
心していたくな鳴きそ蛬（きりきりす）かことかましき老のねさめに
Crickets, please do not stridulate strongly. It's so loud enough to wake up this old woman(= me) in the middle of sleep.


The mark under きり is not a comma but an iteration mark called くの字点.
Iteration mark - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In this era(Heian-Kamakura), きりきりす/きりぎりす referred to こおろぎ "cricket" in modern Japanese.
 
That was disappointing, I was expecting some secret ancient Japanese Sumatra technique in a kimono. All I get is a old woman woken up by a bug.
 
Wish you could know もののあはれ...
 
Isn't there any difference between "know" and "hear"?
 
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