Palindromic Poems (Kaibunka): Osaka

Torii Kiyotsune

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Here the actor Nakamura Kumetaro stands reading a book of palindromes in front of a window that looks out on a plum tree in bloom. The poem, a palindrome, at the top of the print reads: Oshima to mo tsui ni itsumo to yuku haru wa kuyu to mo tsui ni itsumo tomeshi wo "Yearn for me," it says, but somehow it has already passed, spring, the mists I thought still lingering have suddenly cleared.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

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.

Metropolitan Museum of Art