Shiba Kō 司馬光

Ch: Sima Guang (1019-86); also called Sima Wenguan (Jp: Shiba Onkō 司馬温光), and used the name Junshi (Jp: Kunjitsu 君実). A statesman and Confucian scholar of the Northern Song dynasty, famous for great intelligence. Born in Shanxi (Jp: Sasei 山西). Best known for an incident in his youth in which he saved a playmate from drowning in a large jar by using a heavy stone to break open the bottom of the vessel, letting the water out. This story was a theme in Japanese art of the Edo period and often is represented as part of pictures of Chinese boys at play *karako asobi 唐子遊. A standard subject for *Kano-ha 狩野派 artists, the legend was also painted by other specialists in Chinese subjects such as Kawanabe Kyōsai 河鍋暁斎 (1831-89).