Noh Costume (Chōken) with Water Plants and Mulberry Leaves

Noh Costume (Chōken) with Water Plants and Mulberry Leaves

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

A wide-sleeved outer robe worn primarily by Noh actors performing dances in female roles, the chōken is often made of silk gauze delicately patterned in metallic thread. Here, as in many chōken, there are two different patterns. Scattered mulberry leaves decorate the base of the robe and sleeves, while larger, crestlike compositions of water plants (omodaka, arrowhead, and suisen, a type of narcissus) decorate the chest and shoulders. The motifs are related to the Tanabata Festival, celebrated on the seventh day of the seventh month. According to legend, this is the only day of the year when the two “lover-stars” or deities Orihime and Hikoboshi—ordinarily separated by the Milky Way—can meet.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Noh Costume (Chōken) with Water Plants and Mulberry LeavesNoh Costume (Chōken) with Water Plants and Mulberry LeavesNoh Costume (Chōken) with Water Plants and Mulberry LeavesNoh Costume (Chōken) with Water Plants and Mulberry LeavesNoh Costume (Chōken) with Water Plants and Mulberry Leaves

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.