Art historians tend to assume a continuity between Japanese narrative painting, especially illustrated handscrolls (emaki), and contemporary graphic narratives (manga). But manga narratives relate even old stories as if they were new, using specific techniques of focalization. This shall be demonstrated through a project created for Rietberg Museum Zürich: an adaptation of the Jūnirui utaawase (Poetry Contest of the Zodiac animals) scrolls to manga and webtoon.