Twelve Pictures of the Months: 5. The Mai Picture | Yoshimura Kokei 吉村孝敬 | 1769-1836

In May, before the rainy season, rice is planted. The festival on May 5th ( kodomono hi, the Boys' Festival) with its many symbols is usually used to mark the month. These include the waterfall with rising carp (koinobori) and the helmet, meant to remind young boys of knightly ideals. However, Yoshimura Kokei adheres to pastoral poetry, because in the countryside, among the farmers, one learns what is most important in May: planting rice seedlings in flooded fields, thus securing the staple food for the entire year.

On the picture rails, the heart-shaped mallow aoi is a reminder of May. It is iconographically the quintessential May plant. For centuries, the Aoi Festival has taken place in Kyoto in mid-May, and this plant is its iconographic centerpiece.