Kozuka with the Celestial Shepard (Jp. "Hikoboshi")

Description This kozuka depicts the Shepard (Jp. "Hikoboshi") who is separated from his lover, the Weaving Maiden (Jp. "Orihime") by the Milky Way. The celestial lovers meet once a year on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. Their meeting is celebrated in Japan as the Tanabata festival. The Shepard and the Maiden are the stars Altair and Vega. The constellation containing Altair is shown on the right side of the kozuka, above clouds. The Shepard drives an ox in front of him. Two small birds in flight are at the upper left. On the reverse, incised lines indicate water.

Provenance Henry Walters, Baltimore [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.

Inscriptions none [Sticker - edged with a blue trellis pattern] 563

Credit Acquired by Henry Walters