The Pillow Book - Pillow Book Picture Scroll

A picture scroll from the late Kamakura period (early 14th century). It is a pictorial version of Sei Shonagon's The Pillow Book. Currently, it is a single volume (Important Cultural Property, private collection) consisting of seven sections of text and seven sections of pictures, but the order of the arrangement is out of whack, and it is thought to be a compilation of the remaining parts of the original scroll. The seven remaining sections correspond to sections 83 (two scenes), 89, 100, 123, 130, and 132 of the popular edition. The paper for the text is highly decorative, with indigo cloud shapes inscribed in the four corners and gold and silver paint underpaintings. The pictures are monochrome, a typical white painting consisting of thin ink lines and areas of dark ink applied to the hair and furnishings. It is considered a representative example of the Hakubyo Monogatari emaki scroll along with the Takafusakyo Tsuya Kotoba Emaki scroll and the Toyonoakari Ezoushi scroll, but there are no other examples of this scroll, especially the exquisite brushwork that is reminiscent of a blueprint and the inorganic surface. It has been speculated that the extant scroll corresponds to the "Sei Shonagon Pillow Book Picture (Sumi-e) Two Volumes" in the Gosukoin's Kanmon Gyoki (December 3, 1438).

[Yasushi Murashige]

"Shigemi Komatsu (ed.), "Japanese Picture Scroll Collection 10: Pillow Book Illustrated Texts and Others" (1978, Chuokoron-Shinsha)

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

鎌倉後期（14世紀初期）の絵巻。清少納言(せいしょうなごん)の『枕草子』を絵画化したもの。現在、詞(ことば)・絵各七段からなる一巻（重文、個人蔵）であるが、配列の順序が乱れており、当初の絵巻の残存部分を集めたものと思われる。現存七段は流布本の第83（二場面）、89、100、123、130、132段にあたる。詞書の料紙は四隅に藍(あい)色の雲形を漉(す)き込み、金銀泥で下絵を施すなど装飾的である。絵は単色で、細い墨の線と髪や調度に塗った濃い墨の面で構成した典型的な白描画である。『隆房卿艶詞(たかふさきょうつやことば)絵巻』『豊明(とよのあかり)絵草紙』などとともに、白描物語絵巻の代表的作例にあげられるが、とくに製図を思わせるような精巧な筆技、無機的な画面は他に例をみない。後崇光(ごすこう)院の『看聞御記(かんもんぎょき)』（永享10年〈1438〉12月3日条）に載る「清少納言枕草子絵（墨絵）二巻」が現存の絵巻にあたるとの推論が行われている。

［村重　寧］

『小松茂美編『日本絵巻大成10　枕草子絵詞他』（1978・中央公論社）』

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