Wagtail on a Rock

Attributed to Taikyo Genju Japanese

mid-14th century

Not on view

Near two withered branches and a moss-pocked boulder, a scraggy wagtail raises his head as if distracted by the inscription above. The text is an allegory on Zen training and the pursuit of enlightenment. Both painting and poem were probably composed by Taikyo Genju, a monk and amateur painter who trained with the eminent Yakuō Tokken (1245–1320) at Kenchōji in Kamakura before journeying to China to study with Zen masters in the city of Hangzhou. His poem compares the pecking of the bird at a rock to a monk’s search for truth within himself:

By a withered tree
with no twigs or leaves,
A wagtail pecks
at a straggle of lichen.
Within the rock is a block of jade.
When will he manage to dig it out?
—Translated by Aaron Rio

Artwork Details

伝太虚元寿筆　岩に鶺鴒図
Title: Wagtail on a Rock
Artist: Attributed to Taikyo Genju (Japanese, active mid-14th century)
Period: Nanbokuchō period (1336–92)
Date: mid-14th century
Culture: Japan
Medium: Hanging scroll; ink on silk
Dimensions: Image: 32 3/4 × 13 3/4 in. (83.2 × 34.9 cm)
Overall with mounting: 63 3/4 × 18 7/16 in. (161.9 × 46.8 cm)
Overall with knobs: 63 3/4 × 20 1/4 in. (162 × 51.5 cm)
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: Mary Griggs Burke Collection, Gift of the Mary and Jackson Burke Foundation, 2015
Object Number: 2015.300.56
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

More Artwork

In the same medium

From the same time and place

Armor (<i>Yoroi</i>) of Ashikaga Takauji (1305–1358), Iron, lacquer, leather, silk, gilt copper, Japanese — Armor (*Yoroi*) of Ashikaga Takauji (1305–1358)
Japanese
early 14th century

Hawk at sunrise, Jeong Hong-Rae 정홍래 鄭弘來 Korean, Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk, Korea — Hawk at sunrise
Attributed to Jeong Hong-Rae 정홍래 鄭弘來
second half 18th century–first half 19th century

Blade for a Dagger (Tantō), Rai Kunitoshi Japanese, Steel, Japanese — Blade for a Dagger (Tantō)
Swordsmith Blade inscribed by Rai Kunitoshi
ca. 1315–16

Portrait of Shun'oku Myōha, Unidentified artist Japanese, Hanging scroll; ink, color, and gold on silk, Japan — Portrait of Shun'oku Myōha
Unidentified artist
ca. 1383

Helmet Bowl (<i>Hoshi-Kabutobachi</i>), Steel, Japanese — Helmet Bowl (*Hoshi-Kabutobachi*)
Japanese
12th–13th century

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please contact us using the form below. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.

Send feedback

Content Notice

The Metropolitan Museum of Art presents over 5,000 years of art from around the world, and our online collection reflects ongoing work conducted over the course of our more than 150-year history. You may encounter objects or images that may be inappropriate for some viewers or information that may be outdated.