Dolls in May - of the boys festival — Satsuki ningyo

"Dolls in May — Boys' Festival" (Satsuki ningyo, 1897) depicts the warrior dolls displayed for the Tango no Sekku celebration on the fifth day of the fifth month — a festival for boys that called for the display of helmets, armor, and warrior figures as symbols of martial virtue and protection against harm. Shuntei renders the specific character of Satsuki ningyo: the elaborately dressed warrior figures arranged on tiered display stands, the iris and calamus plants associated with the festival, the children who might be observing or interacting with the display.