Moonlight View of Tsukuda with Lady on a Balcony, from the series Fashionable Genji

Ando Hiroshige

Edo period (1615-1868), 1853

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The posture of this figure, both legs bent one behind, the other underneath, signals this monkey is flying. He holds in his left hand a double-edged sword, while his right hand holds a flower. The flower may here represent the herbs required to heal Lakshman (Pra Lak) from a life-threatening wound. Hanuman is only the lid of this exquisite box. The sides of the box are lavishly decorated with birds, crabs, lobsters, mollusks, fish, birds, and diverse plants, suggesting his long journey and ability to fly over land and swim in water. This box might have been employed for luxury ingredients for a betel chewing gift exchange for honored guests.
Bowl with floral shapes painted in underglaze iron.
Calligraphy
Budai, China, porcelain with underglaze blue decoration