The Actor Ichimura Takenojo VIII in the Role of a Puppeteer, showing Puppets to a Courtesan

The Actor Ichimura Takenojo VIII in the Role of a Puppeteer, showing Puppets to a Courtesan

Torii Kiyomasu I

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The scene is probably taken from a play for the Kabuki actor Ichimura Takenojo VII is identified by the crest on his robe. And yet, the sight of a courtesan stopping in the streets of the Yoshiwara in Edo to enjoy the entertainment of an itinerant puppeteer must have been common enough. The courtesan with her obi tied in the front wears a magnigicent long-sleeved robe decorated with plum blossoms, while her two young maids (kamuro) both appear in kimono of striped pattern. In the background are the curtained doorways of two brothels, the Matsuya and the Fujiya.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Actor Ichimura Takenojo VIII in the Role of a Puppeteer, showing Puppets to a CourtesanThe Actor Ichimura Takenojo VIII in the Role of a Puppeteer, showing Puppets to a CourtesanThe Actor Ichimura Takenojo VIII in the Role of a Puppeteer, showing Puppets to a CourtesanThe Actor Ichimura Takenojo VIII in the Role of a Puppeteer, showing Puppets to a CourtesanThe Actor Ichimura Takenojo VIII in the Role of a Puppeteer, showing Puppets to a Courtesan

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.