Otomo no Kuronushi

This print is a mitate, a parody or comparison print that uses clues, puns, and allusions to link different themes and subjects. The author of the poem inset in the print is Otomo no Kuronushi, one of the Six Poetic Geniuses in Japanese literature. His poem reads:

I think I will
stop by and have a look
at Mirror Mountain
to see whether after all these years
I have become an old man.

The seriousness of this poem and the man’s age is meant to juxtapose the scene below, where two young beauties look at prints displaying the latest fashions.