Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ Scary Painting is based on a woodblock print created by Tōshūsai Sharaku in 1794. The original print is called Ōtani Oniji III as Yakko Edobei, and it depicts a kabuki actor assuming a role from a play titled The Colored Reins of a Loving Wife. For players that are trying to determine the authenticity of a Scary Painting in ACNH, they should turn their attention the actor’s eyebrows.
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More specifically, if the subject’s eyebrows slant up towards the middle then it is a fake Scary Painting. However, if his eyebrows slant down towards the middle then it is a real Scary Painting, and it is suitable for exhibition in Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ museum art gallery. Here is an image that highlights these differences, and players that reference it should have little trouble determining if an ACNH Scary Painting is a forgery or not.
Of course, the Scary Painting is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the artworks that are now available in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and fans should make sure to scrutinize everything that Redd has on offer closely. Those fans that do not heed this warning risk wasting their hard-earned Bells and ending up with fake paintings in ACNH.
Fortunately, there are quite a number of ways to earn Bells fast in Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and thus players should not be too concerned if they accidentally pay for a forgery. Indeed, while it may not feel stellar to be duped by Redd’s trickery, it is easy enough to make any Bells that were spent on a fake back by playing the Stalk Market and selling rare bugs and fish.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available now for the Nintendo Switch.
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