Robe (Kosode) with Mandarin Orange Tree and Auspicious Characters

Robe (Kosode) with Mandarin Orange Tree and Auspicious Characters

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

An auspicious mandarin orange tree (tachibana) bearing fruit and flowers rises from the back hem of this narrow-sleeved robe (kosode). The sleeves and upper body of the robe are embellished with characters richly embroidered in green and purple silk and couched gold thread (laid across the ground fabric and stitched to the surface). The three characters (left to right) read manzai-raku, or “enjoying comfort for ten thousand years,” which also alludes to a type of ancient court music (gagaku) and dance presented exclusively at the court to celebrate the New Year. At the same time, the phrase calls to mind a song from the auspicious Noh play Takasago, which proclaims that performing Manzai-raku brings long life.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Robe (Kosode) with Mandarin Orange Tree and Auspicious CharactersRobe (Kosode) with Mandarin Orange Tree and Auspicious CharactersRobe (Kosode) with Mandarin Orange Tree and Auspicious CharactersRobe (Kosode) with Mandarin Orange Tree and Auspicious CharactersRobe (Kosode) with Mandarin Orange Tree and Auspicious Characters

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.