Japanese Antique Fukusa Textile Art Meiji Period

Description

A Japanese silk Fukusa panel circa late 19th-early 20th century of Meiji Period. The front was beautifully decorated with Yuzen-zome, … more A Japanese silk Fukusa panel circa late 19th-early 20th century of Meiji Period. The front was beautifully decorated with Yuzen-zome, a labor intensive resist-dye technique invested by an artist monk Miyazaki Yuzensai (1654 -1736) of Edo period. The front cover likely depicts a scene from the Tale of Genji, showing a nobleman and his servant pays a visit to a lady in a fenced thatch-roof house under a high peak. The details of blossom trees and pines, as well as the characters, and scenery with a gradual color are astounding. It is telling that the Yuzen dying was used such an mastery.
The piece has a red silk backing and still retains two red tassels on the lower corners as well as decorative stitches along the edges. There is a patched design on the back likely a Mon symbol (family crest).
Fukusa is a traditional Japanese textile art used as a panel for presenting gifts at important occasions. less