Mementoes

Mementoes

Placing a bugle toy and a small Japanese flag on the tatami mat at the right corner, and the character of chu (loyalty) are written on the upper right-hand corner of the book on the desk behind. In the interior of the room appearing to be during the Sino-Japanese War, the looks of the bereaved lost in grief in front of mementos of the head of their family killed in battle, are expressed with restrained touch. Because of this the viewer can feel the miserable reality of the war. It is a marvelous piece of war accusation unique to the Meiji era. （「New Edition　Grace, Beauty and Inqenuity-Masterpices of the Museum of Imperial Collections, Sannomaru Shozokan　Vol.2」2003）