Viewing Japanese Prints: Genjimon

Genji crests (genji-mon) or Genji incense (genji-kô) were emblems associated with the 54 chapters of the Genji monogatari ("The Tale of Genji"), written by Murasaki Shikibu in the first quarter of the eleventh century. Murasaki was the daughter of a provincial governor of the Fujiwara family who belonged to the second rank of the court aristocracy. Many ukiyo-e prints and series were inspired by her famous romance novel about Prince Genji and Heian court life in the 10th-11th centuries (some scholars consider it the finest prose work ever written in Japan, and certainly the preeminent example from the premodern era). For more about the origin and significance of these crests within the context of ukiyo-e, see What are Genji-mon? and Kuniyoshi's "Cloudy Genji". ©2000 by John Fiorillo

1 Kiritsubo (Paulownia Court)	2 Hahakigi (Broom Tree)	3 Utsusemi (Shell of Locust)	4 Yûgao (Evening Faces)	5 Wakamurasaki (Lavender)	6 Suetsumuhana (Safflower)
7 Momiji no ga (Autumn Outing)	8 Hana no en (Festival of Cherry Blossoms)	9 Aoi (Heartvine)	10 Sakaki (Sacred Tree)	11 Hana chiru sato (Orange Blossoms)	12 Suma (Suma)
13 Akashi (Akashi)	14 Miotsukushi (Channel Buoys)	15 Yomogyû (Wormwood Patch)	16 Sekiya (The Gatehouse)	17 E-awase (Picture Contest)	18 Matsukaze (Wind in the Pines)
19 Usugumo (Wisps of Cloud)	20 Asagao (Morning Glory)	21 Otome (The Maiden)	22 Tamakazura (Jewel Garland)	23 Hatsune (First Warbler)	24 Kochô (Butterflies)
25 Hotaru (Fireflies)	26 Tokonatsu (Wild Carnations)	27 Kagaribi (Flares)	28 Nowaki (Typhoon)	29 Miyuki (Royal Outing)	30 Fujibakama (Purple Trousers)
31 Maki-bashira (Cypress Pillar)	32 Umegae (Plum Branch)	33 Fuji no uraba (Wisteria Leaves)	34 Wakana no jô (New Herbs: Part One)	35 Wakana no ge (New Herbs: Part Two)	36 Kashiwagi (Oak Tree)
37 Yokobue (The Flute)	38 Suzumushi (Bell Cricket)	39 Yûgiri (Evening Mist)	40 Minori (The Rites)	41 Maboroshi (The Wizard)	42 Niônomiya (His Perfumed Highness)
43 Kôbai (The Rose Plum)	44 Takegawa (Bamboo River)	45 Hashihime (Lady at the Bridge)	46 Shii-ga-moto (Beneath the Oak)	47 Agemaki (Tasseled Knots)	48 Sawarabi (Early Ferns)
49 Yadorigi (The Ivy)	50 Azumaya (Eastern Cottage)	51 Ukifune (Boat on the Water)	52 Kagerô (Drake Fly)	53 Tenarai (Writing Practice)	54 Yume-no-Ukihashi (Floating Bridge of Dreams)

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Genji-mon (源氏紋) or Genji-Kô (源氏香)