Daigensui Myōō

This outstanding work is a hoso-e, a kind of charm used as protection against or recovery from smallpox, as red was believed to ward off plague and disaster. Usually showing a heroic figure, this painting features one of the fierce five Wisdom Kings in Esoteric Buddhism. The painting is accompanied by a letter from Kamiryo Seiju, a physician and good friend of Hōgai, explaining to a priest that this painting was used in rituals as a religious icon.