In this Meiji-era reinterpretation, Pepe and a group of kimono-clad companions stroll past a Western-style emporium, its façade emblazoned with the characters 夢風洋 (Yume Fūyō – “Dreams of Western Winds”). The scene echoes the kaika-e woodblock prints that documented Japan’s rapid modernization: Western mannequins in tailored dresses, gas lamps, brick buildings, and the fashionable streets of Yokohama. The central Pepe matron, holding a folding fan, becomes a humorous yet fitting proxy for the ambivalence of the time, half fascination, half bewilderment, as Western fashions flood the city. Around her, younger Pepes whisper, smile, and observe the curious mannequins in the shop window, while traditional ladies cast sidelong glances, embodying the tension between old customs and new aesthetics. Rendered in muted pigments, textured paper grain, and the distinctive linework of Meiji ukiyo-e, the scene captures the cultural crossroads of 19th-century Japan,now reframed through the playful, anachronistic lens of Pephistory.