Puppeteer with Puppet

A Japanese-style painting on a long, rectangular piece of paper with a decorative border on both sides. The artwork, titled "Puppeteer with Puppet" by Tsukioka Sessai, depicts a man carrying another figure on his back. The man on the back has black hair styled in a distinctive topknot and wears a white kimono under a brown patterned robe. He holds a red object in one hand. The man carrying him has black hair styled in a similar topknot and wears a multicolored kimono with a red top section. The background of the painting is a solid tan color with some darker spots, and there are vertical Japanese characters and red seals on the left side.