Many Westerners, including Engelbert Kaempfer, Philipp Franz von Siebold, and Rutherford Alcock, who visited Edo-era Japan, described "ohaguro" as an abhorrent custom which disfigured women. Alcock conjectured that the purpose of it is chastity by making the women intentionally unattractive to prevent extramarital relationships. Japanese social scientist Kyouji Watanabe disagrees with this theory. Based on the fact that Japanese girls were allowed a large degree of both social and sexual liberty until the time of ohaguro, when they assumed the responsibility of wife and mother, Watanabe thinks that it was a social ritual by which both society and girls confirmed the determination of matured women.