The exhibition features calendars depicted by Katsushika Hokusai and his pupils and others.
It is on view at The Sumida Hokusai Museum from December 18 to March 2, 2025.
Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849) started his career as a traditional ukiyo-e artist, creating works featuring beautiful women and popular actors. However, as he aged, he began to be attracted to the natural world, creating the famous Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji series which are characterized by dramatic compositions, dynamic lines, clear blue colors, and a deep affection to nature.
Hokusai produced calendars which were essential to the people in Edo period as well.
Shall we see what they are like?
You will be captivated by the displays, which surpass your usual expectations of Hokusai's work.
The Edo period in Japan flourished in a distinctive calendar culture centered around small, humorous woodblock prints known as "daishō" or "egoyomi." These calendars concealed the designations of long and short months within their witty designs. And they were essential for everyday life in a time when the lunar-solar calendar was in use.
This exhibition highlights these clever and artistic creations, inviting you to discover the clever ideas and techniques applied in what were quite small works. Please try to find the hidden indications of long and short months.
[Section 1 To Enjoy the Daishō]
A lunar-solar calendar (commonly called "the old calendar") was used until 1873 when Japan adopted the solar Gregorian calendar. Under the old calendar, the long months (with 30 days) and the short months (29 days) changed every year.
Privately commissioned prints depicted the long and short months were published, in which you will see the concealed information. Those prints are now called picture calendars, egoyomi or daishō.
1 The Edo Calendar
This is a unique calendar in the Edo period, which was distributed by Ise Grand Shrine priests (oshi), and was the most common of its time. The oshi, lower-ranking priests, provided prayers, lodging, and guidance to pilgrims. The calendar includes annual lucky/unlucky directions, varying month lengths, and daily zodiac signs with associated fortunes for each direction.
Ise Calendar, private colletion (all terms)
Ise Calendar (partial), private collection (all terms)
2 Patterns Used in the Daishō Calendars
Daishō calendars used five distinct patterns to conceal the length of months (long or
short:
A: Motifs drawn using the names of the months.
B: Month names transformed into texts.
C: Images incorporating the names of the months.
D: Months presented in order.
E: Month names presented in text.
These five patterns will help you finding the daishō easily.
*Can you find hidden numbers that tell you the shorter month?
You will see the answers below.
Tsuno Daishi is the name given to Ryōgen, a Tendai sect priest from the early Heian period. Legend tells of a plague epidemic which Ryōgen drove away, transforming himself into a demon with horns. Since then the amulets bearing the image of Tsuno Daishi have been regarded as powerful protectors against illness and other calamities.
LET'S DECODE!
You will see the characters 正、三、五、十一、八、六 （1，3，5，11，8，6).
They are the shorter months in 1786.
This work is classified as A pattern.
Unknown, Tsuno Daishi (partial), The Sumida Hokusai Museum (all terms)
*Can you find hidden numbers that tell you the longer month?
You will see the answers below.
Kubo Shunman 窪 俊満 (1757-1820) is a student of Kitao Shigemasa and a versatile Japanese ukiyo-e artist. He worked on kyōka poem and haiku, too. In the upper left corner of the picture, you can see the top of the torii beyond the bank, which is Mimeguri Shrine (Mukojima, Sumida City) on the east bank of the Sumida River.
LET'S DECODE!
You can see a rabbit in the picture, "Usaki" suggesting Usagi, meaning a rabbit, in the kyōka poem, "大のや" in the tobacco tray, and the kimono of the rabbit with "五、十二、三、二、八、十一、正”. Among years of the rabbit, the months 1,2,3,5,8,11,12 were longer months in 1807, a fire-rabbit year.
This work is classified as A pattern.
3 Daishō indicating the Months Without Numerals
Daishō often uses numerals to represent months (e.g., month two, month three). However, there are also non-numerical approaches, such as using special month names (e.g., Satsuki for the fifth month) or depicting annual events tied to specific months (e.g., Girls' Day for the third month, Boys' Day for the fifth). Today, these daishō is hard to figure out.
Can you find hidden information?
LET'S DECODE!
The first of these kyōka verses uses the names of different types of mochi, glutinous rice cakes, to represent specific months of the year. For example, "seated mochi" or "kagami mochi" signifies January (New Year's), "lozenge mochi" represents March (Girl's Day), and "oak-leaf mochi"symbolizes May (Boy's Day).
You can also see "Imo dango" (potato dumpling) to the full moon of the 8th month, "Gencho/Inoko mochi" to the day of the boar in the 10th month, "Iwai mochi" possibly to the 7-5-3 celebration in the 11th month, and "Kabitari mochi" to the water god festival on the first day of 12th month.
The second verse uses the kanji for numbers (2, 4, 6, 7, and a repeating 7 for an intercalary month) and the symbol of chrysanthemum (for the 9th month) to represent the shorter months of the year.
By analyzing the pattern of longer and shorter months, the year represented is determined to be 1797.
This work is classified as E pattern.
[Section 2 Katsushika School Daishō]
Early in the Meiwa era (1764-72), the popularity of daishō surged. Cosequently people held parties to exchange them. While artists certainly contributed to the production of daishō, clients who commissioned daishō probably conceived the humorous and witty themes.
Hokusai created most of his daishō between 1794 and 1804, during so called Sori-style period.
You can see works by Hokusai and his pupils from this era.
LET'S DECODE!
The kyōka verse features a rooster (a zodiac animal), sittiing on the gate.
You can see the Japanese names for the months 十, 正, 三, 七, 九, 十一, 十二 (10, 1, 3, 7, 9, 11, 12) on woman's obi, sash. A year of the rooster with the longer months 1, 3, 7, 9, 10, 11, and 12, was 1813, a water-rooster year.
This work is classified as C pattern.
Katsushika Hokusai, Snowy Morning (partial), The Sumida Hokusai Museum (all terms)
*Different print of the same title is displayed in the 1st term and 2nd term
LET'S DECODE!
You can see an ax marked with the kanji for "small" and has the kanji for the months 1,5,6,8,10, and 11.
Based on those shorter months, the year represents 1799.
This work is classified as C pattern.
Katsushika Hokusai, Kintarō Feeding a Japanese Bush Warbler (partial), The Sumida Hokuai Museum
[Section 3 the Daisho challenge]
You've seen various examples of daishō. Shall we try to figure out the number of days in each month in daishō?
Daishō were created for specific years to teach people the number of days in each month. By determining the number of days represented in daishō, we can also determine the year it was made.
LET'S DECODE!
This is the daishō of the fifth year of Kōka (1848) and the year of earth-monkey (Tsuchinoe-saru) in Chinese Zodiac. Therefore, the mask of monkey is depicted.
This work is classified as C pattern.
Which one is the year of 1848 among the folowing?
①Longer months 1,3,4,6,8,12. Shorter months 2,5,7,9,10,11。
②Longer months 2,5,7,9,10,12. Shorter months 1,3,4,6,8,11。
③Longer months 2,5,7,9,10,11. Shorter months 1,3,4,6,8,
Maybe we could find the answer at the museum.
For further information, please click here.
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