Keisai Eisen (Japan, 1790-1848) Print, oban tate-e, from the series Shin Yoshiwara yūkun nana Komachi (新吉原遊君七小町), Courtesans of the new Yoshiwara in the role of the Seven Komachi, plate Sanomatsuya uchi Shiratama (佐野松内白玉), Shiratama of Sano-Matsuya. Signed Keisai Eisen ga. Publisher Tsutaya Kichizō (Kōeidō). Circa 1826 (Minor restorations). Size 36,8 x 25,5 cm The courtesan Shiratama of the Sano Matsuya is seated in front of a lavishly decorated dressing table with a mirror. The mirror recreates the atmosphere of her private space, where she contemplates herself in a dazzling display of fabrics and colours. She is dressed in her ceremonial clothes, her hair adorned with gold lacquer decorations, and an embroidered garment is draped over a kimono stand beside her. To the left of the table, we see an early example of product placement: a packet of Bien Senjoko face powder, the owner of which, a certain Mr Sakamoto, was a frequent patron of prints at this time, particularly those by Eisen. The episode mentioned here, Sekidera Komachi, is based on the play written by Zeami Motokiyo (1363-1443), which describes the solitary poetess at the end of her life. In the play, through a conversation with the priest of the Seki temple, Komachi expresses her deep regret for her vanity and the proud contempt she had for the many suitors of her youth. In the visual style typical of ukiyo-e, where images of beauty are presented under the mask of a classical literary subject, Sekidera Komachi's moral tale is evoked by images of women admiring themselves in mirrors.