Hara Soemon Mototoki 原惣右衛門元辰 / Gishi shijushichi zu 義士四十七図

Hara Soemon Mototoki of the Gishi Shijushichi-zu series depicts one of the forty-seven ronin who participated in the night raid on Kira's mansion in 1703. Each portrait in the series gave Gekko the challenge of individualizing a figure about whom historical sources offered minimal physical description, requiring him to invent physiognomic variety within the shared costume and context of samurai retainers, making the series a study in imaginative portraiture under severe constraints.