Hanga
Two White Rabbits Under a Full Moon by Ohara Koson — Japanese Woodblock print, ink and color on paper with embossing, c. 1928–1930

Two White Rabbits Under a Full Moon

by Ohara Koson

Shin-hanga
MoonlightNight Scenes
Bokashi
Date:
c. 1928–1930
Medium:
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper with embossing
Format:
Oban
Dimensions:
36.2 × 24 cm
Edition:
Published by Watanabe Shozaburo

Description

Two white rabbits crouch beneath a full moon — the lunar rabbits of East Asian mythology, the creatures believed to inhabit the moon and pound medicinal herbs with a mortar and pestle. Produced around 1928–1930 with embossing adding texture to the rabbits' fur and the moon's surface, this print engages one of East Asian culture's most beloved folk images. Koson's rabbits are simultaneously naturalistic — the animals rendered with anatomical care — and mythological, their placement under the full moon invoking the tradition that connects rabbit and moon across centuries of East Asian art.

More Prints by Ohara Koson

Cat and Goldfish by Ohara Koson

Cat and Goldfish

c. 1928–1930

Woodblock print, ink and color on paper

Heron or Egret by Ohara Koson

Heron or Egret

c. 1900–1945

Woodblock print

"Snipes and Reeds," 1926 and "Wild Ducks and Pampas Grass" by Ohara Koson

"Snipes and Reeds," 1926 and "Wild Ducks and Pampas Grass"

Two woodblocks in colors (framed separately)

Barn Swallow in flight by Ohara Koson

Barn Swallow in flight

Mokuhanga (Japanese woodblock)

More Moonlight Prints

Mount Fuji on a Moonlit Night, Kawai Bridge (Tsukiyo no Fuji [Kawaibashi]), from the series "Selection of Views of the Tokaido (Tokaido fukei senshu)" by Kawase Hasui

Mount Fuji on a Moonlit Night, Kawai Bridge (Tsukiyo no Fuji [Kawaibashi]), from the series "Selection of Views of the Tokaido (Tokaido fukei senshu)"

1947

Color woodblock print; oban

Evening Moon at Nakanoshima, Sapporo (Sapporo Nakanoshima no yuzuki), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan, Eastern Japan Edition (Nihon fukei shu higashi Nihon hen)" by Kawase Hasui

Evening Moon at Nakanoshima, Sapporo (Sapporo Nakanoshima no yuzuki), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan, Eastern Japan Edition (Nihon fukei shu higashi Nihon hen)"

March 1933

Color woodblock print; oban

Matsushima in Moonlight (Tsuki no Matsushima) by Kawase Hasui

Matsushima in Moonlight (Tsuki no Matsushima)

1919

Color woodblock print

Kiyozumi Garden in Moonlight by Kawase Hasui

Kiyozumi Garden in Moonlight

January 1938

Woodblock print, ink and color on paper

Featured in Collections

Curated cross-cuts that include this print.

Shin-Hanga: Japan's Twentieth-Century Print Revival

Frequently Asked Questions

Two White Rabbits Under a Full Moon was created by Ohara Koson (小原古邨) in c. 1928–1930.

Two White Rabbits Under a Full Moon uses Bokashi, on woodblock print, ink and color on paper with embossing.

Two White Rabbits Under a Full Moon was published by Watanabe Shozaburo (c. 1928–1930).

Two White Rabbits Under a Full Moon depicts moonlight and night scenes.

Two White Rabbits Under a Full Moon measures 36.2 × 24 cm (Oban format).