The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 22, 2025

Writing Table with Pine, Bamboo, and Plum

1400s
(1392–1573)
Lacquered wood with gold and silver sprinkled powder (maki-e), metal fittings
height: 10.2 cm (4 in.); width: 58.4 cm (23 in.); depth: 36.9 cm (14 1/2 in.)
Edward L. Whittemore Fund 1958.429
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

The trunks of the pine and plum are visible through the silver slopes of the ground plain.

Description

Low writing tables like this one were developed for use by those seated on the floor. They often had matching writing boxes. The table features the classic design of pine, bamboo, and plum, known together as the Three Friends of Winter. Indicating resilience in the face of harsh conditions, pine is evergreen, bamboo bends but does not break, and plum is the first flower to bloom in early spring. The plants are a metaphor for strength of character.
  • Sorimachi, Tokyo, Japan
    ?–1958
    (Hollis & Company, Cleveland, OH, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1958–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Yoshino, Tomio 吉野, 富雄. Jidai Makie Kyushitsu Shusei. Tokyo: Saikwasha, 1934–43.
    Lee, Sherman. E. “Year in Review.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 46, no. 10 (December 1959): 210–231. Reproduced: p. 217; Mentioned: p. 230 www.jstor.org
    Lee, Sherman E. Japanese Decorative Style. [Cleveland]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1961. Mentioned and Reproduced: pp. 44–45 archive.org
    Lee, Sherman E. A History of Far Eastern Art. New York: H.N. Abrams, 1964. p. 376
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 280 archive.org
    Feldman, Edmund Burke. Art as Image and Idea. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, 1967. p. 265
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 280 archive.org
    Alscher, Ludger, ed. Lexikon Der Kunst. Architektur, Bildende Kunst, Angewandte Kunst, Industrieformgestaltung, Kunsttheorie. Leipzig: Seemann, 1976. p. 839
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 379 archive.org
  • Asian Autumn: Masterpieces from the Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 17, 1991-January 5, 1992).
    Visions of Landscape: East and West. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 17-March 21, 1982).
    Japanese Decorative Style. The Cleveland Museum of Art (August 30-October 15, 1961); The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL (November 9-December 17, 1961).
  • {{cite web|title=Writing Table with Pine, Bamboo, and Plum|url=false|author=|year=1400s|access-date=22 March 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1958.429