The Horse Sekitoba and the General Guan Yu (Jp: Kan'u), from the series "A Series of Famous Horses (Meiba bantsuzuki)"

From Totoya Hokkei's surimono series A Series of Famous Horses (Meiba bantsuzuki), this 1822 print recorded by the Art Institute of Chicago depicts Sekitoba (Red Hare) and the general Guan Yu, known in Japanese as Kan'u. The horse Sekitoba and its rider — Guan Yu, the legendary Han-dynasty general venerated as both warrior and god of literature — formed one of the most famous pairings in Chinese historical romance, taken up enthusiastically by Edo readers and printmakers. Meiba bantsuzuki is characteristic of how Edo kyoka-e clubs organized their commissions around thematic cycles: in this case, celebrated horses of history and legend, each accompanied by kyoka verses. Hokkei, a senior pupil of the Hokusai school, brought to the project his master's confident handling of equine anatomy and his own polished surimono technique. The format encouraged deluxe printing — graded color, mica, embossing and metallic pigments — applied to the horse's coat, the general's armor and weapons, and the surrounding details. As one entry in a sustained series, the sheet exemplifies the way Totoya Hokkei and his patrons used surimono cycles to combine learned subject matter, literary play and the technical luxuries of private printing, anchoring the result in a connoisseur's collection where the full sequence could be enjoyed in turn.