Shinsen Roei Shu (新撰朗詠集)
Shinsen Roei Shu (Newly Selected Collection Singing Poems) is a collection of Chinese poems compiled in Japan. The collection consists of two volumes and was compiled by FUJIWARA no Mototoshi.
Shinsen Roei Shu was completed during the reign of Emperor Toba. The collection was compiled after the model of "Wakan Roei Shu" (Collection of Japanese and Chinese Singing Poems). Shinsen Roei Shu is a collection of singing poems that mainly consists of waka and Chinese poems composed by Bai Letian, MINAMOTO no Shitago, SUGAWARA no Michizane, OE no Mochitoki, 菅原文言 (reading unknown) and other poets.
540 Chinese poems and 203 waka have been included in this collection.
Penmanship
Selected and written by hand by FUJIWARA no Mototoshi, this anthology comes in the form of a Kansubon (book in a scroll style). The scroll was made of kumo-gami (a type of torinoko that has blue cloud patterns on the upper section and purple ones on the lower) sprinkled with gold and silver kirihaku (gold or silver leaves cut into different shapes and dropped onto the base where glue is applied for sticking the leaves into patterns) with flowers and birds being painted in silver. This is a skilled and distinctive style of calligraphy.