The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 20, 2024

Playing the "Hand Game"

Playing the "Hand Game"

c. 1760
(Japanese)
Japan, Edo period (1615-1868)
hanging scroll; ink and color on paper
Overall: 39 x 55.3 cm (15 3/8 x 21 3/4 in.)
The Kelvin Smith Collection, given by Mrs. Kelvin Smith 1985.258
Location: not on view

Description

This scene depicts three people playing a game in which three players make hand gestures simultaneously. The relationship among the gestures determines the winner. Known as hand games, during the eighteenth century they were popular in Japan among courtesans. In this version, the contestants use both hands, indicating a special variation such as the fox hand game, which features gestures for a fox, a village leader, and a hunter.
  • Dr. Richard Lane, Tokyo
    (Dr. Richard Lane, Tokyo)
  • A Private World: Japanese and Chinese Art from the Kelvin Smith Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 14-November 13, 1988).
  • {{cite web|title=Playing the "Hand Game"|url=false|author=Hasegawa Yasumasa|year=c. 1760|access-date=20 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1985.258