The Chinese emperor Ming Huang and Yang Kuei-fei

Kano school · early 17th century

From the eighth century onward, Chinese poetry, painting, and calligraphy were highly esteemed in Japan. Certain Chinese subjects, familiar to Japan's cultural leaders through literary sources, enjoyed great popularity during the early seventeenth century. Chinese poetry of the Tang dynasty (618-907), especially by Bo Juyi (772-846), had been highly appreciated in the Heian period (794-1185) and was nearly as familiar to literate Japanese as was the historic poetry of Japan.