Nichosai, an Osalca artist in the latter part of Edo period, produced a caricature scroll titled \u27The Scroll of Hell\u27 (property of the Kansai University Library). The inscription at the beginning states that learning has become popular and people are not frightened by Hell any more, so the King of Hell is flustered. In 21 scenes of Hell, the strange Hells of the present day are described in very amusing ways, beginning with \u27the Hell of the Smokers\u27 and concluding with \u27the Hell of the Road-horse Drivers\u27. It is filled with humor and satire, which reflects great credit on him as a caricature artist. The scroll adopts motifs from the medieval period \u27Storybook of the Hell\u27. But the demons in these scenes are not like the medieval period fearful demons but folksy and human ones. The sharp forms drawn in this scroll clearly show the talent of Nichosai as a professional artist. As they are remarkably similar to the sophisticated images presented in his illustrated book \u27Ehon Kotozukai\u27 published in the 2nd year of Bunka (1805), it is presumed the work was completed in his late years
