Shutendoji in Oeyama Palace

Held in the Clarence Buckingham Collection at the Art Institute of Chicago (accession 1925.2150), Shutendoji in Oeyama Palace is a [chuban](/glossary/chuban) color woodblock print measuring 30 by 19.5 centimeters and dated to 1765. The subject is the legendary demon Shutendoji ('Drunken Boy'), the bandit-chief and shape-shifting oni who ruled from Mount Oe and abducted noble women from the Heian capital before being slain by the hero Minamoto no Yorimitsu (Raiko) and his Four Heavenly Kings of retainers, a story dating to the late Heian and Kamakura periods and richly elaborated in subsequent picture-book and theatrical tradition. Hyakki's composition depicts a moment of the banquet scene at Shutendoji's palace, with the demon-chief attended by retinue, and the print is distinguished by its elaborate decorative effects: gold and silver leaf embellishments enrich the figures and setting, although the silver elements have now oxidized to a dark gray with age.