Yamauba Blackening her Teeth, with Kintarō
Kitagawa Utamaro Japanese
Not on view
Utamaro designed numerous prints featuring Yamauba, a legendary woman who lived in the mountains and raised the rambunctious boy Kintarō, who went on to become a storied warrior. Here, Kintarō clings to Yamauba’s back and sticks out his tongue at his reflection in the mirror she uses to blacken her teeth. This beauty regimen, associated since ancient times with aristocratic women, was widely practiced among Edo-period social classes.
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