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Description
On the first morning of the new year, a special spiced wine or otosu is drunk before breakfast and thought to bring good health throughout the coming year. Usually the youngest member of the family or group is served first, and in Chikanobu's print, a young woman raises a red lacquered wine cup to receive the invigorating brew from Inner Palace matron or joro toshiyori, while older women solemnly wait their turn in the background. The beverage is made by steeping overnight various flowers, herbs and roots in sweet rice wine or mirin. The two folding screens are painted with pine, bamboo, and plum branches or shochikubai, the traditional evergreens and early blossoms associated with the new year.
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