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Secondary sourcePainting17th century

Lady Murasaki Paper Fan

anonymous · 17th century

A 17th-century Japanese folding fan painting depicting Lady Murasaki in a court interior, now held by the Honolulu Academy of Arts.

This decorative fan painting shows how Murasaki Shikibu's image was used in everyday art and objects of court culture.

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A folding fan painting on gold leaf showing a Japanese court interior: a woman in layered robes reclines on a red lacquered platform beside a low table, with blinds and a folding screen, and a maple tree with reddish leaves at right.
Anonymous, Lady Murasaki, paper fan, 17th century Japan. Honolulu Academy of Arts.

About this source

What it is

This anonymous ink, color and gold painting decorates a folding paper fan from 17th-century Edo-period Japan, now in the Honolulu Academy of Arts. It shows a woman in layered robes reclining on a red lacquered platform beside a low table, with blinds, a folding screen, and a maple tree with reddish leaves nearby.

Why it matters

Fans like this were everyday luxury objects decorated with scenes from literature and legend. Choosing Murasaki Shikibu as a subject shows how deeply her image was woven into Japanese art and court culture centuries after she lived.

Look closer

  • Why would someone want a scene of a famous writer painted on a fan they might carry?
  • What do the furnishings tell us about how court life was imagined?
  • What has been left out that a real historical record might include?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Murasaki Shikibu on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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