Jigoku dayū (Hell Courtesan)

Kawanabe Kyōsai, artist

1831–1889

Sawamuraya Seikichi, publisher

Jigoku dayū (Hell Courtesan), 1874, Meiji period (1868–1912)

Portfolio/Series title: Kyōsai raku ga (Kyosai's Drawings for Pleasure)

Where object was made: Japan

Material/technique: color woodcut

Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 335 x 227 mm
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 355 x 241 mm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 13 3/16 x 8 15/16 in
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 14 x 9 1/2 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 19 x 14 in

Credit line: Museum purchase: Lucy Shaw Schultz Fund

Accession number: 2001.0012

Not on display

Add to portfolio

If you wish to reproduce this image, please submit an image request

Images

Label texts

Archive Label date unknown:
Using an arm to prop up her head, this woman dreams of numerous skeletons playing, dancing, drinking and frolicking about her. She is not disturbed by these visions, though, because she is the Hell Courtesan, identified by the image of the King of Hell on the lower portion of her costume. Shrouding most of her body is a brilliant red robe that suggests she is impersonating the Buddhist monk Daruma (in Sanskrit Bodhidharma). Though Daruma is not physically present, it is not uncommon to see satirical images of this holy figure bewitched by a beautiful courtesan. This convention seems to suggest that the Hell Courtesan proves irresistible even to the most holy.

This print comes from a series of fifteen that satarize the Meiji period (1868-1912) when Japan was experiencing significant changes in government and society. Kyōsai was both a painter and a print designer who often depicted bizarre, ironic and comic subjects. His wild imagination and creativity earned him renown during his lifetime and after.

Archive Label date unknown:
The inscription on this print reads, "Picture of dreaming about cavorting skeletons" (Gaikotsu no yōgi o yume ni miru zu). This image is thought to be the earliest example of Kyōsai's oft-used theme of the Hell Courtesan paired with skeletons and symbols of decay. The courtesan wears an obi sash with an image of Emma the king or judge of Hell, and hairpins with skulls on the tips. She sleeps on a priest's chair, letting fall a priest's flywhisk, and is enveloped in an intense red robe like that worn by Daruma, the First Patriarch in Zen Buddhism, who is sometimes associated with the courtesan trade. According to legend, Hell's Courtesan was led to enlightenment by the Zen priest Ikkyu (1394-1481). In 1457, Ikkyu wrote a piece titled "Skeletons" (Gaikotsu), which set forth the idea that appearance is nothing but illusion. Skeletons have since been a popular Buddhist symbol of the transience of earthly life.