Discover exquisite embroideries, dyed silk and velvet panels, tapestries, and appliqué works
This screen, with its skilful technique, imaginative subject, and high-quality frame and mounts, may have been produced for one of the great international exhibitions that were such a feature of the late nineteenth century. The date 1893 found on a paper at the waist of a figure in the left-hand screen (the figure pulling a handcart) suggests that this may have been the World’s Columbian Exposition, held in Chicago that year. (Exhibition number 45)
Impey, Oliver, The Art of the Japanese Folding Screen: The Collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Ashmolean Museum (Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 1997), no. 21 on p.103, illus. pp. 104-105
Impey, Oliver, and Joyce Seaman, Japanese Decorative Arts of the Meiji Period 1868-1912, Ashmolean Handbooks (Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 2005), no. 1 on pp. 10-11, illus. pp. 10-11
Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 9 November 2012-27 January 2013, Threads of Silk and Gold: Ornamental Textiles from Meiji Japan, Clare Pollard, ed. (Oxford: Ashmolean Museum, 2012), no. 180 p. 180, pp. 6, 31 & 32, illus. pp. 53 & 180-185
lacquer, oshi-e, shakudō
Chinese and Japanese lacquer is made from the sap of the lacquer tree, which is indigenous to Eastern China. It is applied to wood as a varnish or for decorative effect. In India and the Middle East, lacquer is made from the deposit of the lac insect.
Padded figures made of silk and other fabrics, mounted onto a panel or screen. This technique dates back to the 16th century.
alloy of copper and gold, patinated to a dark blue-black colour
Objects are sometimes moved to a different location. Our object location data is usually updated on a monthly basis. Contact the Jameel Study Centre if you are planning to visit the museum to see a particular object on display, or would like to arrange an appointment to see an object in our reserve collections.
Objects from past exhibitions may have now returned to our stores or a lender. Click into an individual object record to confirm whether or not an object is currently on display. Our object location data is usually updated on a monthly basis, so please contact the Jameel Study Centre if you are planning to visit the museum to see a particular Eastern Art object.
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