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(Japanese: “reed-script picture”), decorative, cursive style of Japanese calligraphy, the characters of which resemble natural objects, that is used to decorate scrolls, stationery, and lacquerware. The typical
ashide-e is a decorative representation of a poem, in which stylized characters serve as both text and illustration. There are also
ashide-e that do not represent a specific poem but a poetic sentiment. The
ashide-e as a variety of poem-picture (
uta-e) was often used on
maki-e (lacquerware decorated with gold or silver) such as ink-slab cases and letter boxes.