Mice on Rice-cake Flowers c. late 1790s

This hanging scroll, made by Nagasawa Rosetsu in 18th-century Japan, depicts several mice amidst rice-cake flowers. Mice, often associated with resourcefulness and abundance, are seen here amongst the plum blossoms, emblems of perseverance and renewal. Notice how Rosetsu captures the mischievous vitality of these creatures, a motif echoed through art history. Consider how the image of small, often overlooked animals can symbolize larger themes, like the fleeting nature of life and the persistence of nature's cycles. The plum blossom motif, with its associations with resilience, has been used for centuries across cultures, and its beauty and symbolism are passed down through artistic traditions, evolving with each new interpretation. The clustering of the mice around the flowers might evoke deep-seated memories of survival and community. The presence of these symbols invites us to consider the cyclical, non-linear progression of imagery, as they resurface across time, transformed by culture, yet resonant with ancestral emotion.