This work derives from a trend in the Edo period of depicting the parody narrative of the Courtesan Eguchi. The character originates from a fifteenth-century Noh play, featuring a courtesan thought to personify Fugen Bosatsu (Sanskrit, Bodhisattva Samantabhadra). Described in the Lotus Sutra, Fugen Bosatsu is a Buddhist deity who accompanies the Historical Buddha Shakyamuni, often depicted in Buddhist art holding a staff and riding a white elephant.

Katsura Munenobu was a student of Tsukioka Settei (1710-87).