A Courtesan as Hi Chōbō

Artist Okumura Masanobu 奥村政信 (Japanese, 1686–1764)

Dateabout 1710

Mediumwoodblock print (sumizuri-e); ink on paper

DimensionsHorizontal ōban; 28.6 x 42.7 cm (11 ¼ x 16 13/16 in.)

ClassificationsPrints

MarkingsPublisher: Mark of "Iga-ya, publisher at Motohama-cho" (Motohama-cho Iga-ya hanmoto)

Credit LineJohn Chandler Bancroft Collection

Terms

Object number1901.59.2214

Label TextHi Chobo is the Japanese name of the Chinese sage Fei Zhangfang, a third century market official from Runan (mentioned in Hou hanshu, magician Hu Kung (Jap. Koko), hidden in a large jar and became his student. In some Chinese lore Fei Zhangfang is said to have been rewarded by his teacher with a magical bamboo rod and a charm consisting of a written poem (about the rod), tools that enabled him to fly for great distances in a short amount of time. Perhaps alluding to such a version of the legend, Masanobu shows the courtesan in this early sumizuri print holding a sheet of paper inscribed with what may be an excerpt from a classical Chinese-style poem In this fanciful transposition Fei Zhangfang is shown in the guise of a Japanese woman reading a love poem while flying through the air seated on a great white crane.

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