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An Old Man and Attendants Watching the Sugoroku Game by Katsushika Hokusai — Japanese Color woodblock print; surimono, 1799

An Old Man and Attendants Watching the Sugoroku Game

by Katsushika Hokusai

Date:
1799
Medium:
Color woodblock print; surimono
Format:
Oban

Description

An elderly man and his attendants observe a game of sugoroku — a board game resembling backgammon and popular at New Year celebrations — in this surimono from 1799. The composition conveys the leisure culture of prosperous Edo households during the holiday season, with the dignified figure of the old man lending a sense of domestic ceremony to what is ostensibly an entertainment scene.

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Frequently Asked Questions

An Old Man and Attendants Watching the Sugoroku Game was created by Katsushika Hokusai (葛飾北斎) in 1799.

An Old Man and Attendants Watching the Sugoroku Game depicts figures, daily life, and interiors.