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. 16, Guo Ju: He Buried His Son to Save His Mother, 1891 - The paragon shown in the top panel is Guo Ju (Kakkio in Japanese), who cared for his wife, aging mother, and young son. They did not have enough food for everyone, and the grandmother grew sick. The couple decided they would bury their son so that they could save the food for his mother, because his first duty as a son was to her. With great sorrow, they went to dig a grave in the forest, but Guo Ju hit something with his hoe. They discovered a golden pot engraved with his name. So they were able to sell the pot and buy medicine and food for his mother, and keep their son. The image below shows a mother offering a drink to her young son, sitting on a bench at a tea stand, with a dog at lower left. A charming image with fine detail and soft shading in the sky.

Artist - Chikanobu (1838 - 1912)

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

Condition - This print with excellent color and detail as shown. Slight soiling, a few creases and spots, stains at edge. Please see photos for details.