Chris Beetles Gallery

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A Spring Flower – Jiro-Bo

Alfred Parsons (1847-1920)

Price

£650

Signed

Signed with monogram, inscribed 'a spring flower' and 'Notes in Japan I'

Medium

Ink

Dimensions

8 x 5 ½ inches

Illustrated

Alfred Parsons, Notes In Japan, New York: Harper & Brothers Publishers, 1896, page 78

Exhibited

'Chris Beetles Summer Show 2025', Chris Beetles Gallery, London, June-September 2025, no 68

The Latin name for this wildflower is Corydalis Decumbens. It flowers in forests and fields throughout April and is native to Japan. Here Alfred Parsons refers to its Japanese name, in full ‘Jirobo-engosaku’. In the Ise province of Japan, ‘Jiro-bo’ means the second son in a family. They refer to the Viola as ‘Taro-bo’, or first son in a family, as they are the two most prevalent flowers in the region.

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