A Woman Sweeping up Her Love Letters

Suzuki Harunobu

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

A beautiful woman holding a broom looks back at baskets full of love letters borne by an ox. Harunobu's image alludes to the popular Chinese legend of Kanzan (Hanshan) and his companion Jittoku (Shede) from the Tang dynasty (618–907). Kanzan and Jittoku were typically depicted as a pair: the former holds a sutra and the latter a broom.

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