Daikoku's Mallet and Two Rats

Browse the collection

Artist Katsushika Hokusai (Japanese, 1760–1849)

Title Daikoku's Mallet and Two Rats

Date 1804

Medium Color woodblock print on paper

Dimensions Overall: 5 x 7 in. (12.7 x 17.8 cm)

Credit Line Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University

Accession Number 70.4.366

Share this artwork!

About this Work

Hokusai playfully combined white rats with the lucky mallet (uchide no kozuchi) associated with Daikoku, one of the seven gods of good fortune.

The blind printing (karazuri) or intaglio of the whiskers, fur, and tails of the rats adds an elegant texture to the print. To achieve this effect, the blocks were carved and printed without ink.

Poem:

Wishes for luck of many thousand years
Held in a magic mallet
From the lucky direction
The fresh spring arrives this morning
The year of the rat
—Kyukaku-tei Akitsuke

Provenance
More Details

Provenance research is ongoing for this and many other items in the Eskenazi Museum of Art permanent collection. For more information about the provenance of this artwork, please contact the department curator with specific questions.

Viewing Information
This artwork is currently off display. You may be able to see this artwork by filling out an art viewing room request.

Request this Image
The Eskenazi Museum of Art provides images of its collection, free of charge, upon request. This artwork is under copyright protection. You can request the image and it will be emailed to you when the request is complete.

Cite this Page
"Daikoku's Mallet and Two Rats | Collections Online." Collections Online. Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art, Indiana University, 2025. https://artmuseum.indiana.edu/collections-online/browse/object.php?number=70.4.366