2-738-076 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Poem by Emperor Sanjo, from the series One Hundred Poems by One Hundred Poets Explained by an Old Nurse, 1835-36. Hokusai used a poetry anthology as inspiration for a series of prints. It illustrates a melancholy poem about death and the moon that Emperor Sanjo (976-1017, reigned 1012-16) wrote while suffering from illness and facing pressure to abdicate, which he did in 1016, dying only a year later. Stylized clouds frame a moonlit ceremony honoring the long-suffering emperor’s memory. A priest raises a gohei , a ritual implement with zig-zag strips of white paper attached to a staff, while the surrounding figures reverentially bow.