The Illustrated Tale of Oishi Hyōroku
1704
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
1704
unspecified
From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art
You see a long paper scroll filled with quick, inky drawings of a man fighting strange fox spirits. The foxes twist into monsters—some with human faces, others with claws and tails. This is part of a folk tale from Japan’s Edo period. The hero, Oishi Hyōroku, gets tricked over and over by the foxes before finally outsmarting them. The drawings feel lively, like a comic strip from 300 years ago. If you like these kinds of ghost stories, look up *japan, edo period (1615–1868)*.
