Ono no Komachi Praying for Rain
Edo period (1615–1868), about 1771
Isoda Koryusai Japanese, 1735–1790
Japan
In one legend about Ono no Komachi, the ninth-century poet summons rain by reciting an ode, thereby ending
a long drought. In this print, an 18th-century woman in modified court dress accomplishes the same feat by reading the poem in her hand, possibly a love letter.
Color woodblock print, hashira-e