Once in a Lifetime
Japanese Kanji Wall Scroll

Discount Asian Art
Reason for discount: Minor waviness and a few tiny specks in the silk.

Written by a real Japanese calligrapher, this wall scroll should be worth $230 in a gallery or over $100 on my site. However, this one is discounted to less than half price.

Once in a Lifetime

Close up view of the artwork mounted to this silk brocade wall scroll

This Japanese title can be translated as "for this time only", "chance meeting", "one meeting, one opportunity", "never again", or "one chance in a lifetime". There is a suggestion that because it's a fleeting chance, one should cherish it as such.

The characters literally mean "one time one meeting" - of course, the Kanji characters have meaning far beyond a direct translation like this.

Some might use this proverb to talk of an opportunity that presents itself just once in your life. It could also be the single chance-meeting with your true soul mate. Basically an expression for any event that might happen once in a lifetime.

This is primarily a Japanese title, however, there is also a Traditional Chinese (and old Korean) version of this proverb. Just the last character is different.