This exceptional illustrated handscroll depicts in lavish detail the flurry of activity associated with the annual feast of Ebisu, which takes place in the Osaka-Kyoto region on January 10th. Ebisu, one of the seven gods of good fortune, is generally shown as a smiling figure wearing a tall cap folded in the middle, seated cross legged and holding a fishing rod and a big sea bream, a symbol of good luck. The scroll opens with a view of the fish market (Ebisu is regarded as the god of fishing, farming and commerce): fishermen are bringing in their catch, which is then auctioned to eager fish peddlers. The fish peddlers are next seen carrying the fish in buckets down a market street lined with vegetable and fish shops. There is also a carpenter making wooden stands for ceremonial food offerings. There are several brothels along the street, one identified as the Omiya. A banquet with sea bream as the main course is in progress in one house and having a hanging scroll of Ebisu in the alcove. In the street, a man carries a miniature shrine with a statue of Ebisu.

A young boy is carried to the gate of the Ebisu Shrine in a lavish palanquin. Retainers follow behind him with offerings including sea bream. In front of the shrine there are toy peddlers and visitors enjoying the sights. The deity is represented by a sacred mirror on the altar; a priest is blessing some worshippers. Overhead there are numerous ema, painted wooden plaques donated to the shrine by devotees. One has made the name of the artist Hishikawa Moronobu (ca. 1618-1694). Two are dated: 1681 and 1689. On the shrine grounds a young priestess performs a ritual purification.

Beyond the shrine precincts we enter the town proper. A group of beggars is shown at the entrance to a samurai mansion, while a samurai in the street is shown carrying sea bream in the direction of the shrine. The street is lined with merchants' shops selling colored threads, mirrors, rice cakes (mochi) and fans. There is a money changer as well as a peddler selling miniature bows and arrows of the sort associated with the New Year's festivals at shrines. In the final scene, New Year's decorations are mounted on the front of a house.