Image, Text and Audience is the first book dealing with paintings related to Taishokan, the most popular ballad-drama of the 16th century. Key narrative elements in the story include the transmission of a magic jewel from China to Japan and the succession of the Fujiwara family. The narrative provided motifs for historical accounts, Buddhist proselytising texts, a no play, puppet theatre plays, and satirical novels of the 18th century. This lavishly illustrated book is of interest to scholars of various disciplines including art history, literature, and religious studies....