An Illustrated Marriage of Apparitions

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FROM THE CLEVELAND MUSEUM OF ART’S CATALOG

The matchmaking, engagement, wedding, and birth of the first child of two apparitions, or bakemono , literally "things that change," are illustrated in this whimsical, humorous handscroll. Japanese folklore abounds with such strange creatures, most famously represented in handscrolls featuring a procession of 100 supernatural monsters. Aside from a textual preface and cartouches indicating the content of the scenes, the tale is told visually. The artist and whereabouts of the original handscroll are unknown, but a number of other 19th-century copies by amateur painters exist in Japanese collections, attesting to its broad appeal.

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