Chikanobu's Twenty-four Paragons of Filial Piety - The Chinese scholar Guo Jujing wrote the book "The Twenty-four Paragons of Filial Devotion" during the Yuan Dynasty. Inspired by the loss of his own parents, he scoured history for examples of the most respectful and devoted children. Alluding to the famous stories of the twenty-four children and their extraordinary devotion to their parents and relatives, Chikanobu's series juxtaposes the paragon in the upper panel with a more modern equivalent below. The artist plays off the old stories, offering serious parallels as well as lighthearted and humorous contrasts in the modern versions.

No. 22, Wu Meng: Attracting Mosquitoes To Drink His Blood - Charming scene of a mother and her young boy in an interior on a summer night. A brazier at left sends smoke into the air to help drive away the mosquitoes. The beauty wears a blue tie-dyed kimono with a bold leaf pattern, a fan in her hand. Her child plays with a couple of balls on the floor, sitting near an elegant Western oil lamp with a glass shade. The inset above shows Wu Meng (Gomo in Japanese) baring his skin so that mosquitoes will attack him instead of his father. The family was too poor to afford mosquito nets, so Wu Mung would remove his shirt and sleep close to his parents, in hopes that the insects not disturb them. The boy slumps over a low table with the mosquitoes buzzing about him while his father reclines on the floor and smoke billows up from a brazier. A handsome design with soft bokashi shading in the evening sky.

Artist - Chikanobu (1838 - 1912)

Image Size - 13 1/4" x 8 3/4" + margins as shown

Condition - With excellent color and detail as shown. Slight soiling. Most prints have a few small holes, repaired. Some prints have faint ink offsetting or a few creases. Please see photos for details. Generally in good to nice condition overall.