Currently bound together with other 11 prints in the series in folding album.

Signed: “Yoshu Chikanobu” with Nobuyasu jo

Colored ink on paper, sheets assembled in folding album format, red silk on the covers, woodblock prints.

A boy is dressed like the Buddhist Guardian King Bishamonten, holding a trident and wooden pagoda (that represents the relics of the historical Buddha). The boy's mother holds a calico cat (a "tiger" symbol) while the family servant giggles and points at her young master.

The inset shows a temple hall dedicated to Bishamonten, whose name appears on the red paper lantern inside the door. The gateway has modern wrought iron panels affixed to a traditional stone gatepost, and a rickshaw is being pulled down the street - all indications of the modern Meiji era. However, the stores seem to be traditional buildings, and the merchants have contributed the red paper lanterns that flank the gate, reading "mid-merchants" (shonai chu) association.

For more information, please refer to the Chikanobu exhibition catalogue.

Morimoto Junzaburo

This object has the following keywords:

• 1891-1912
• Children
• Groups
• Wild Animals
• Zodiac

This object is a member of the following portfolios: