"Beginning with a brief but insightful explanation of the development of symbols throughout Japanese history, the book looks at thematic motifs encountered in both the classical fine arts and the applied arts.

The motifs are organized according to broad thematic categories such as "the cosmos, heaven and earth" and "animals of the land and sea," among others, allowing for broad reading on a number of topics of interest to a wide variety of readers, including collectors of Asian art and students of Japan.".

"Nearly every symbol is illustrated with fine examples of art and design from major public and private collections, offering the reader a wealth of visual information to enrich the expert commentary on each subject. Beautiful objects of a variety of media are represented: painting, sculpture, woodblock prints, netsuke and inro.".

"The book is the culmination of more than twenty years of research by the author, much of which was conducted while she lived in Japan. Baird's text reflects recent developments in Japanese scholarship but her prose is as accessible as it is informative, making this book an indispensable volume for both those already familiar with Japanese culture and those newly introduced to its rich complexities."--BOOK JACKET.