Monkeys Watching a Praying Mantis Catching a Wasp
- Medium
- Hanging scroll, ink and color on paper
- Dimensions
- 24 × 38 7/16 in. (60.96 × 97.63 cm) (image) 61 3/16 × 42 3/4 in. (155.42 × 108.59 cm) (mount, without roller)
- Genre
- Painting
Tags
Japan
About
Nothing is known about the painter Iwai Kōun except that he was born in Nagasaki, the only port town in Japan that allowed foreigners to trade and live there during the Edo period (1603–1868). Nagasaki paintings reflect the strong influence of Chinese art, which arrived there on merchant ships. On the right side of this painting, a praying mantis has caught a wasp and is about to kill it. A monkey in the tree above watches the spectacle, while he is observed by another monkey on the far left.