Kaichigo

Overview

Kaichigo, printed 貝児, appears in Sekien’s Hyakki Tsurezure Bukuro. A small humanlike figure bends forward from an open decorated box, reaching toward shells spread on the floor. Several shells carry painted designs, and a cord with tassels lies beside them. The figure’s patterned robe and arranged hair belong to a household scene rather than an underwater landscape.

The shell game equipment is central to this representation: the image associates the being with collected and ornamented shells used as familiar objects. It does not depict a marine animal crawling out of the sea. The creature’s small body and long reaching fingers provide direct appearance evidence, while the box situates it among possessions that become strange in Sekien’s object-focused collection. A claim that it compulsively plays the game or punishes losing players would exceed what this inspected plate establishes.

Origins & earliest records

Japan; Toriyama Sekien’s illustrated collection

Records & interpretation

Directly inspected labelled primary woodblock plate; descriptive claims limited to this witness.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

1. 01

   Hyakki Tsurezure Bukuro

   Toriyama Sekien · 1784

   Inspected Smithsonian digitization; image canvas index 9 (zero-based, not printed page number).

Family & connections

A source-supported family tree or inspiration record has not yet been compiled for this profile. Related reading below indicates a connection in subject matter, not a proven lineage or creative influence.

Primary records and illustrations

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

1. Primary illustrated sourceHyakki Tsurezure Bukuro digitized primary plate 貝児Research access: 2026-10-05
2. Institutional catalogSmithsonian Libraries digitized volumeResearch access: 2026-10-05

Image credits

Kaichigo, named plate by Toriyama Sekien

Kaichigo, printed 貝児, appears in Sekien’s Hyakki Tsurezure Bukuro. A small humanlike figure bends forward from an open decorated box, reaching toward shells spread on the floor. Several shells carry painted designs, and a cord with tassels lies beside them. The figure’s patterned robe and arranged hair belong to a household scene rather than an underwater landscape. Caption label checked at enlarged resolution.