‘Di jian tu (Illustrated Mirror for Emperors)’ is a set of illustrations depicting the actions of successive Chinese emperors from Yao and Shun through to the Song dynasty, depicting those that should serve as rules for good governance and those that should serve as warnings against evil. The iconography of the ‘Di jian tu’ is based on the ” Di jian tu shuo (Explanation of the illustrated Mirror for Emperors),” compiled by Ming dynasty politician Zhang Juzheng and others. In Japan, six volumes of ‘Di jian tu shuo’ were published by Toyotomi Hideyori in 1606, it became widely known afterwards. Then Di jian tu shuo was taken up as a subject by the Kano school, and was later standardized by Sanraku and Tan’yu and painted on sliding screens.