Memorial Surimono

<p>This memorial print was created to commemorate the seven-year anniversary of Sasaki Chikuju, a little-known haiku poet from Osaka. Memorial prints such as this became common in the mid- to late 19th century because they served as a visually pleasing way for poets, public figures, and those with cultural interests to remember a departed friend or teacher. These prints became an extension of the memorial service, a way for distant people to honor the deceased in words; here 202 people wrote commemorative poems. Such prints were also given to the participants at the memorial service.<br>The host of the print (and probably also the memorial service) was Sasaki Ippu, a son of the departed Chikuju. Another person, who called himself Chikufu Koji and was possibly a teacher of both father and son, wrote the title of the inscriptions at the upper right.</p>