Winter center left from the set Rice Farming in the Four Seasons, 1620s, Attributed to Kano Sanraku, Japanese, 1559 - 1635, 76 x 39 1/4 x 4 in. (193.04 x 99.7 x 10.16 cm), Ink, light color, and gold on paper, Japan, 17th century, These sliding door panels originally formed the four walls of a small reception chamber at Daikakuji, a Buddhist temple in northwest Kyoto that also served as the palace for Japans emperor. The panels form a continuous panorama from wall to wall and present various activities associated with rice cultivation: plowing, transplanting the rice, irrigating, threshing, and grinding. The didactic theme is derived from Chinese painting; agriculture, according to Confucian teachings, is the basis of a well-ordered society. Accordingly, when Japanese rulers adopted Confucianism as their ruling ideology, they also commissioned paintings that reflected social stability, morality, and government values.