Japanese Creation Myth (Kuniumi)

This group gathers artworks depicting Kuniumi, the Japanese creation myth in which the primordial siblings and spouses Izanagi and Izanami, following the creation of heaven and earth, were tasked by the elder gods with forming the Japanese archipelago. Standing on the floating bridge of heaven, they stirred the primeval ocean with a jeweled spear, and the brine that dripped from its tip congealed into the first island. Descending to it, the pair proceeded to give birth to the remaining islands of Japan, as recorded in the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki. These works depict the divine couple and their act of creation, the mythic origin ancient Japan assigned to its own land.