Ashmolean Eastern Art Online, Yousef Jameel Centre for Islamic and Asian Art

This print depicts the 13th-century warrior Hasebe Nobutsura, who helped his ally Prince Mochihito to escape an attack on his palace. Nobutsura stayed behind disguised as a lady-in-waiting to help to distract the enemy troops. While there, he discovered Mochihito’s famous flute, which he feared the prince would return to collect. Nobutsura, shown in female disguise, he holds the precious flute, wrapped in purple silk, between his teeth. The approaching enemy troops can be identified by their red lanterns, each bearing a white butterfly crest.