Two court women in an open Japanese woodblock-style book

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Two court women appear inside the pages of an open book, so the figures sit within a book rather than in a free-standing scene. The device draws on a long tradition of Japanese artists depicting aristocratic women of the imperial court in layered robes, and it echoes the illustrated picture books, or ehon, that flourished in the Edo period. Woodblock printing made such books affordable enough for a broad readership, so the image reflects both courtly subject matter and the commercial print culture that shaped how Japanese art reached ordinary households. Notice how the open book becomes part of the composition itself.

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