”Twelve Views of Modern Beauties: Tegowaso” (Woman of Unyielding Appearance) by Keisai Eisen (late Edo Period/latter half of the 19th century)

In this picture, there is a prostitute studiously applying beni, holding a beni-choko (domed container daubed beni into it) in her left hand and a lip brush in her right hand. Only her lower lip is thickly painted an iridescent green. This makeup style, called sasa-beni, was in fashion between 1804 and 1829. Sasa means bamboo leaf in Japanese, which is similar to the iridescent green color of beni that was thickly painted on only the lower lip.