Kawanabe Kyōsai, Female Ghost, a hanging scroll painting
Japan
Meiji era, about AD 1871-89
As a boy of eight, Kyosai is said to have fished a severed head from the river and taken it home to draw. In this painting we can almost hear the female ghost shrieking in triumph as she bears off the severed head. Cutting off a defeated enemy’s head was the ultimate sign of victory in battle, but here, she even has blood dripping from her gaping fangs: the unthinkable suggestion is that she has actually bitten off this head.
A Leak In The Safe 