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Ko-omote Mask, named Narano

  • By Iseki Kawachi
  • Japan Edo period, 17th century
  • Polychrome on wood
  • h: 21.2cm w: 13.6cm
  • [20213]

This mask is for a young female role - fresh, pure, and beautiful. The character “ko” or small, implies adorable in Noh masks. The inside surface of the mask is inscribed with a waka poem that speaks of the yaezakura cherry trees of the old capital at Nara and how their scent wafts through the present-day court in Kyoto. The poem’s Nara reference explains the mask’s name Narano, literally the Nara plain.

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