Phaethon, from the portfolio Greek Mythology

Phaethon — the reckless youth who borrowed the sun god's chariot, lost control of the horses, and was struck down by Zeus before he could set the earth ablaze — appears in Hagiwara's 1965 Greek Mythology portfolio as a study in the consequences of overreaching. The myth's central image, the falling figure and the runaway horses against a background of fire, was perfectly suited to the dynamic, carved-surface technique that Hagiwara had developed. The print is among the most narrative in the Greek Mythology series, the mythological story requiring more evident figuration than his usual abstract approach.