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Submitted: July 24, 2010
Image Size: 999 KB
Resolution: 3125×1897

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Abumi-guchi - "Stirrup Mouth"by ~Gitoku

Traditional Art / Drawings / Fantasy

The Abumi-guchi is a type of fur-covered tsukumogami (a creature that was once an inanimate object, usually a tool) that is formed from the stirrup of a mounted soldier who was killed in battle.

In the Gazu Hyakki Tsurezure Bukuro (The Tedious Bag of One Hudred Vessels), a book published by illustrator Toriyama Sekien in 1784, a drawing of the Abumi-guchi is accompanied by the following poem:

膝の口をのぶかにいさせてあぶみを越して
おりたゝんとすれども、
なんぎの手なればと、
おなじくうたふと、
夢心におぼへぬ。

An arrow is shot deep into the knee,
he falls from his stirrups,
the hand of suffering is dealt,
and such a song is sung,
I saw it not in my dreaming mind.

This obakemono is the least interesting monster for me, mainly because Toriyama's original design is pretty uninspired; it looked more like one of those "Yip Yip" martians from Sesame Street with a stirrup for a mouth and ropes for arms. So I redesigned the creature to look more like a squid (a la Hokusai's "The Dream of the Fisherman's Wife") with the stirrup on its head like the mouth of an Angler fish.

~The-Bluetip Jul 26, 2010 Professional Digital Artist

This is a really awesome piece...very cool design and love the backstory! Nice job with the details...great work ^-^

~Gitoku Jul 28, 2010 Hobbyist Traditional Artist

Cheers. It was hard to make this creature look cool

~mwmh91 Jul 26, 2010

Again this is so good. wow wow!

~Gitoku Jul 28, 2010 Hobbyist Traditional Artist

Thanks!

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