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Suzuki Harunobu

Ono no Komachi Praying for Rain

Edo period (1615–1868), 1770
Color woodblock print; oban
35.6 × 26.7 cm (14 × 10.5 in)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

In this image, a woman who is meant to represent poet Ono no Komachi is about to set a toy ship in the water. Behind her, an attendant holds up an umbrella to protect her from the rain. The poem above is a play on two names for Japan: There is indeed reason to have bright sunlight here in the Land of the Rising Sun, Yet why is it also called “Under Heaven (Rain)?” (Translation by Kenji Toda) (The Japanese words for heaven and rain are homonyms.)

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