A Pair of Quails and Poppies

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Title

A Pair of Quails and Poppies

Creator

Utagawa Hiroshige
Japanese, 1797 - 1858

Date

ca. 1835

Subject

In poetry, barley quails (mugi-uzura) are traditionally associated with late spring, and poppies (keshi) in bloom with mid-summer, so a dream in autumn about this avian species is a hope for a warmer, less grim season of life.
Aki no yume
mite ya nakidasu
mugiuzura
In an autumn dream,
the barley quails
begin to chirp.
—Trans. John T. Carpenter

Format

woodblock print

Type

print

Source

Gift of Dr. Karen Hughes in Honor of Dorothy Naylor Woodbury

Citation

Utagawa Hiroshige Japanese, 1797 - 1858, “A Pair of Quails and Poppies,” Ewing Gallery Permanent Collection, accessed March 28, 2024, https://ewinggallery.omeka.net/items/show/644.