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Noh costume (atsuita)


Kimono
Japanese
Edo period
19th century
Object Place: Japan

Medium/Technique Silk; 5/1 twill ground patterned in 1/5 twill order, supplementary gilt-paper patterning wefts tied in 1/2 twill order; silk patterning weft floats; embroidered with silk floss
Dimensions 158.1 x 141.0 cm (62.25 w/collar x 55.5 in.)
Credit Line William Sturgis Bigelow Collection and Julia Bradford Huntington James Fund
Accession Number15.1170
NOT ON VIEW
ClassificationsCostumes

DescriptionNoh theater robe (atsuita), for a male role, with design of scattered Chinese flowers (karahana) in green, purple, blue, white and gold silk and gilt paper discontinuous supplementary patterning wefts on a tan twill-weave silk ground with design of concentric waves (seigaiha) in gilt paper discontinuous supplementary patterning wefts; white plain-weave ramie (?) lining.
ProvenanceHirase Collection. By 1915, Yamanaka & Co., New York; 1915, sold by Yamanaka to the MFA, through William Sturgis Bigelow, Boston, [see note 1] for $175 [see note 2]. (Accession date: October 7, 1915)

NOTES:
[1] Bigelow arranged the transaction and transport of the costumes on behalf of the MFA.
[2] No. 85 on Yamanaka & Co. object list. Costumes from the Hirase Collection (accession no. 15.1165 - 15.1178) were purchased from Yamanaka & Co. individually, along with part of Yamanaka's "Complete Set" of Noh Isho and Men dresses (accession no. 15.1146 - 15.1164), which were sold as a group for $7500. The total sale was $9,969.25.