6933 A furosaki paper screen (for tea ceremony use) painted in ink and colour on a gold ground with matsu (pine trees), fishing nets and Fujisan ().

Japan 17th century Edo period

Dimensions: H.21¾" x W. 73¼" (55cm x 186cm)

This furosaki screen depicts the famous landscape of Miho-no-Matsubara (Miho pine grove). Well known for its picturesque scenery, it combines the white sand of the seashore with the dark green of the pine forest and the soaring figure of Mount Fuji in the background. Two fishing boats can be seen at the water's edge and the foreground is dominated by fishing nets hung out to dry.

Miho-no-Matsubara is a pine forest which stretches along the east coastline of the Miho peninsula of

Shizuoka prefecture. It has been a famous scenic spot since the time of the Manyōshū (Collection of Ten

Thousand Leaves), the oldest existing collection of Japanese poetry, compiled in the Nara period sometime after 759 AD.

The following poem is contained in the third volume and reads :

Iohara no Kiyomi no saki no Miho no ura no yutakeki mitsutsumono omohimonashi

(When I gaze upon the rich seashore of Miho's small peninsula, even the loneliness of my travels appears to vanish completely)

Taguchi no Mashuhito, Manyōshū 3-296

Miho no Matsubara is known as the site of the legend of Hagoromo (The Feathered Robe) The story concerns a celestial being flying over Miho no Matsubara who was overcome by the beauty of the white sands, green pines, and sparkling water. She removed her feathered robe and hung it over a pine tree before bathing in the beautiful waters. A fisherman named Hakuryo was walking along the beach and saw the angel. He took her robe and refused to return it until she performed a heavenly dance for him.

As the angel could not return to heaven without her robe, she complied with Hakuryo's request. She danced in the spring twilight and returned to heaven in the light of the full moon leaving Hakuryo looking longingly after her.

This two-fold screen has several references to this classical legend. Just as the young fisherman was left on the shore the drying fishing nets are symbolic of unrequited love.

The Noh drama Hagoromo is based on this legend and is performed annually in October during the

Hagoro Festival, .

In 2013 the pine groves of Miho-no-Matsubara were added to the UNESCO World Heritage list as part of the Mount Fuji Cultural Site.