"This book introduces over forty surimono in the collection of the Ashmolean Museum and provides readers with an insight into the refined and cultivated Japanese literati culture of the early nineteenth century. As well as exploring the customs, legends, figures and objects depicted, it presents new translations of the humorous poems (kyoka) that lie at the heart of surimono, and highlights the intricate relationship that existed between the poetry and accompanying images."--Cover.

Because money was no object, surimono usually used the finest materials and printing techniques. Most consisted of a picture combined with related poems, and the arrangement of the illustration and the calligraphic text was often very beautifully designed. Exquisite in design and technique and usually small in size, surimono have been described as 'jewels of Japanese printmaking' and have great visual appeal. Despite this, this will be the first time that the Ashmolean's collection of surimono, mostly from the Jennings-Spalding Gift and containing a number of rare and previously unpublished prints, has ever been catalogued.