Property of various owners KAWANABE KYŌSAI (1831-1889)Beauty and Enma-Ō Edo period (1615-1868) or Meiji era (1868-1912), 19th century A hanging scroll brushed in ink and colors on silk depicting a King of Hell holding up a mirror, looking gleefully down at the courtesan and attendant reflected on it, signed Seisei Kyōsai ga and sealed Ichiji sen shi With a wood box inscribed Kyōsai sensei jigoku dayū no zu and with lot tag 48 48 1/2 x 19 1/2in (123.2 x 49.5cm) Provenance Baron Honda, sold Kanazawa Bijutsu Club, 1936 Previously sold in these Rooms March 20, 2012, Lot 2077 Published Tokyo Honda Danshaku ke Hayashi ke/zōhin nyūsatsu mokuroku (Auction Catalogue of the Baron Honda Family and Hayashi Family), Kanazawa Bijutsu Kurabu, 1937. Kyōsai is known for his livelypositions and virtuoso draftsman. His life straddled both the Edo period and the Meiji era and he was also popular as a caricaturist, despite multiple arrests by the shogunate and the new government. He made several paintings based on similar subject matter —the King of Hell ready to hand out punishments to sinners, as also seen in a charger included in our exhibition "Festivals, Landscapes, and Immortals," held at the same time as this sale. The large figure in the background is Enma-Ō, King of Hell, indicated by the character "Ō" (king) in his crown. The sinner awaiting punishment is shown reflected in his mirror, revealing the wrongdoings that led the deceased to Enma's realm. In this painting the expression on the face of the woman is somber, and her hair disheveled, yet she is dressed in beautifully decorated robes. The obi (sash) tied in the front indicates she had been a courtesan in her lifetime. Perhaps the apsara or heavenly deity shown on her obi is a symbol of repentance as she is about to face her fate. The title on the box and the catalogue entry for the Kanazawa Art Club sale identifies this painting as Jigoku dayū (Hell Courtesan), a subject for which Kyōsai was well known.