Returned to lender The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Shells from a Shell-Matching Game Set (Awase-gai)
Not on view
As only the two halves of a specific clamshell can be perfectly matched, this competition’s goal was to identify as many matching shells as possible, typically using 360 shells. The left half was the “ground shell,” and these were spread out upside down on the floor. The right half was the “calling shell.” A single calling shell was placed upside down in the center of the ground shells, and the competitors had to find the matching half. From the early Edo period, the inside surfaces of the shells were sometimes decorated with scenes from The Tale of Genji, as seen here. However, the paintings served only to confirm the match.
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