Urashima Taro Returning Home from the Palace of the Dragon King (Urashima Taro no ko kikoku ju Ryugujo no zu)
- Date:
- 1886
- Medium:
- Color woodblock print; oban diptych
- Format:
- Oban
- Source:
- Art Institute of Chicago
Description
"Urashima Taro Returning Home from the Palace of the Dragon King" (1886) depicts the fisherman of Japanese legend who was taken beneath the sea to the Dragon Palace, spent what seemed like a few days in supernatural splendor, and returned to find that hundreds of years had passed in the world above. Opening the jeweled box given him by the sea princess in violation of her warning, Urashima instantly aged and died. Yoshitoshi renders the moment of the fisherman's disoriented return, the turtle that carried him receding beneath the waves as he steps back into a world transformed by time.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Urashima Taro Returning Home from the Palace of the Dragon King (Urashima Taro no ko kikoku ju Ryugujo no zu) was created by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (月岡芳年) in 1886.
Urashima Taro Returning Home from the Palace of the Dragon King (Urashima Taro no ko kikoku ju Ryugujo no zu) depicts mythology, architecture, and animals.