The chrysanthemum (kiku in Japanese) was brought to Japan from China more than 1000 years ago, as a medicinal herb, because the chrysanthemum tea was used in the traditional Chinese medicine for eye and liver treatments. Much later, during the Edo Period, the chrysanthemum was cultivated in Japan on a large scale as decorative plant, with a large variety of shapes and colors.

Obviously, this success made it one of the most frequently used flowers in the traditional Japanese art. A nice example is this room inside the Kobuntei house in Mito, featuring beautifully painted fusuma panels…

Kobuntei, Mito

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Yesterday’s Japan Photo: About Japan from… manhole covers, Hakodate squid