Onoe Matsusuke I as the Ghost of the Warrior Ki no Natora, in Kiku no En Mukashi no Miyako

Onoe Matsusuke I — later known as Onoe Shōroku I — was a leading specialist in supernatural and villain roles during the late eighteenth century, and his ghost portrayals were among the most distinctive of his time. This hosoban print in the Art Institute of Chicago, dated to about 1791, shows him as the ghost of the warrior Ki no Natora in the production Kiku no En Mukashi no Miyako. Ghost roles in kabuki — particularly warrior-ghosts seeking posthumous restitution — drew on a deep Japanese tradition of vengeful spirits, and the visual conventions of such roles included characteristically pallid makeup, fluid hand gestures, and a particular tenseness of posture. Shun'ei renders the figure with the firm Katsukawa outlining the school had developed for warrior subjects, while signaling the ghostly register through the figure's slightly otherworldly composure. The print serves as both record of a specific Matsusuke performance and as a contribution to the broader iconography of kabuki ghost portraiture.