Shippo in paintings

  • Pair of Shippō Vases

Emperor Meiji and his wife are sitting on luxury chairs in front of a painting.[5] Behind Prince Haru we see a highly decorated vase filled with flowers and tree branches. The illustration shows that the imperial family would decorate their living place with ikebana, Japanese flower arrangements. Although Namikawa Sosuke did not make the vase in this painting, it gives us an idea of the potential use of vases made for the emperor at that time.

Fig: Yōshū (Hashimoto) Chikanobu (Japanese, 1838–1912), A Mirror of Japan’s Nobility: Emperor Meiji, His Wife, and Prince Haru (Fūsō kōki Kagami). 1887, Triptych of woodblock prints; ink and color on paper, 37.5 x 75.2 cm, [The Metropolitan Museum, New York](https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/55254)

Fig: Yōshū (Hashimoto) Chikanobu (Japanese, 1838–1912), A Mirror of Japan’s Nobility: Emperor Meiji, His Wife, and Prince Haru (Fūsō kōki Kagami). 1887, Triptych of woodblock prints; ink and color on paper, 37.5 x 75.2 cm, The Metropolitan Museum, New York