Comic and Miscellaneous
Triptychs and Diptychs,
Part I
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Title: The Famous
and Unrivalled Hidari Jingorô
(Meiyo migi ni teki nashi Hidari Jingorô, 名誉右に無敵左り甚五郎) Description: The left-handed
sculptor surrounded by his many creations Date: 1847-1850
(censors Mera and Murata) Publisher: Ebisu-ya Shôshichi |
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Title: Asahina’s Travel to the Island of Dwarfs (Asahina kobito jima asobi, 朝比奈小人嶋遊) Description: Ashima is
reclining and watching a daimyo’s parade passing by Date: 1846-1848 Publisher: Horimasa |
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Title: The Votive
Tablet with Masks of Kabuki Actors Taken at Face Value (Ataru hônô negai o gakumen) Description: Thirty masks with
disguised portraits of the following actors represented in a framed votive
painting being offered at a Shinto shrine:
1. Nakamura Utaemon
IV 2. Matsumoto Kôshirô
VI 7.
Bandô Hikosaburô IV Date: 1848-1849 Publisher: Ebisu-ya Shôshichi |
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Title: Fish Showing
Performances in the Dragon’s Palace (Ryûgû asobi sakana gei zukushi) Description: Urashima Tarô and Princess Otohime, seated
on a big cushion in the centre of the triptych, are drinking sake while
watching the performances of various fish and sea dwellers from the dragon
king palace. A whale appearing on the lower half of the triptych sends up
gigantic spouts of water from his blowhole situated at the top of its
head. Following animals are performing
their special talents (from right to left): Date: 1847-1848 Publisher: Kazusa-ya Iwazô |
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Title: Strange and
Wondrous Immortal Turtles (Kiki myômyô, 亀喜妙々) Description: Turtles heading for a sake cup in between to rocks. The red sake cup bears the character kotobuki.
The image title Kiki myômyô (亀喜妙々) is a pun that could be
read as "strange, strange" or as “dangerous, dangerous”. Kuniyoshi ironically refers to the ban on
actor portraits since the turtle’s Sino-Japanese reading KI is
identical with that of the character for "dangerous" (abunai).
Not only the distinctive facial features, but also the patterns and
characters concealed on the tortoise shell reveal the identities of the
following actors:
1.
Ôtani Hiroemon (tani) 10. Matsumoto Kôshirô
IV (matsu ,moto) Date: 1847-1850
(censors Mera and Murata) Publisher: Nomura Tokubei |
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Title: Theatrical
Parody of the Sixteen Ahrats (Mitate jûroku rakan, 美達住楼久楽翫) Description: The title of the triptych Mitate
jûroku rakan
(Theatrical Parody of the Sixteen Ahrats) is a pun
on words alluding to the beautiful men who are staying in the brothels
forever. The triptych illustrates 29 densely packed figures consisting of
Buddha’s disciples (arhat, rakan),
apprentices (dôji) and various foreign
looking animals personifying famous actors. The most celebrated actors are
depicted with a nimbus indicating their status as Buddha’s disciples. Usually
there are 16 disciples but in this depiction only 15 appear. The famous kabuki
star Ichikawa Kuzô II is missing his nimbus which
was probably unintended. The majority of the portrayed actors are displayed
as Asians with curly, brown hair and a beard. Hairstyle, garment and figure
of the impersonators of female roles (onnagata) are illustrated in
distinctively western style. Kuniyoshi who was keen on all things foreign
depicted Buddha’s disciples as the following actors:
1.
Date: 1849-1851
(censors Fuku and Muramatsu) Publisher: Sumiyoshi-ya Masagorô |
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Title: Popular Ôtsu-e for the Times: A Long-Awaited
Rarity (Toki ni au Ôtsu-e kitai no maremono, 梳行逢都繪代稀物) Description: The artist Ukiyo Matabei surrounded by Ôtsu-e characters that have come to life to
protect him. Ukiyo
Matabei’s face is hidden by a sheet of paper from
which the Ôtsu-e have
escaped but the paulownia crest (yoshikiri)
on the fan in the artist’s hand and the presence of a cat reveals that Matabei is the feline lover Kuniyoshi himself. The Ôtsu-e figures dancing around the artist are
disguised portraits of the following actors:
1.
6.
Iwai Kumesaburô Date: 1847-1848
(censors Hama and Kinugasa) Publisher: Minato-ya Kohei |
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Title: Battle of the
Shogi Pieces: Prosperity and Peace
across the Board (Koma kurabe banjô taiheiki, 駒くらべ盤上太平棋) Description: Pieces from Shogi (a game like chess) are fighting Date: 7th
month of 1843 Publisher: Gusoku-ya Kahei |
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Title: The Yoshiwara Sparrows’ Temporary Nest (Sato suzume negura
no kariyado, 里すずめ寝ぐら仮有) Description: A crowd of personified
male and female sparrows looking through the latticework is depicted on the
street in the foreground. Sparrows as courtesans adorned in extravagant robes
are sitting in a room projected toward the street surrounded by latticework
while awaiting their prospective customers. A few sparrows in the foreground
are carrying baskets and little tables. Date: 5th
month of 1846 Publisher: Kita-ya Magobei NOTE: In 1845, a fire destroyed the brothels of the Yoshiwara, forcing the
courtesans to move to a temporary location, which this triptych
illustrates. Since prints showing courtesans were banned by
the “Tenpô reforms”, the courtesans are depicted as sparrows. |
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Title: The Foxes’
Wedding (Kitsune no yomeiri
no zu) Description: The red torii of the Inari Shrine on the far right is the starting point
of a foxes’ wedding procession passing through a cedars’ alley. The foxes
depicted in the centre have fully transformed into human beings while the
heads of the figures in the left and right panels still resemble foxes. The
animals in front of and behind the procession are entirely foxes. The term kitsune no yomeiri (fox’s wedding)
refers to the occurrence of rain occurring during brilliant sunshine, which
is said to occur a fox bride is going through the woods to the house of her
fox groom Date: 1839-1842 Publisher: Eshima |
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Title: The False Ikkyû Preaching to the Bill Collectors (Nise no Ikkyû oshô seppô no zu, 偽一休和尚説法之図) Description: Nozarashi Gosuke disguised as
the priest Ikkyû giving sermon at foot of Ikoma-dake in Kawaguchi Province. The sermon is about the terrible agonies
suffered by the rich in hell, especially when they fail to forgive
debts. The listeners are crying, and
one is crossing out entries on his debt register (center sheet). Date: 1843-1846 Publisher: Jôshû-ya Kinzô |
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An alternate state of the above triptych |
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Title: A Great
Doctor Treats Serious Diseases (Kitai na meii nanbyô ryôji,
きたいなめい医 難病療治) Description: The female
doctor Kogarashi, daughter of the quack doctor Chikusai (Yabukusushi Chikusai musume meii Kogarashi), sits in
the center in front of a floral screen; her four disciples, in black jackets,
apply humorous “treatments” to patients.
Thought to be a political satire. Date: 6th
month of 1850 Publisher: Enshû-ya Hikobei I am grateful to Ward Pieters for information about this print. |
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A less labor intensive edition of the above design |
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Title: The Ink
Battle (Bokusen no zu, 墨戦之圖) Description: During the
Nara period pouring ink was a favorite pastime at the Imperial court as a
narrative scroll from the Tosa school illustrates.
Therefore, Kuniyoshi’s print superficially appears to be a copy of the Tosa scroll. However, the person next to the general
wearing a kimono with the wave
pattern could be the senior councilor Mizuno Tadakuni,
while the woman in front of him would be the Shogun’s mistress. A majority of
the depicted figures wear a headgear common among courtiers. The hidden
message behind this print is that the samurai have become as weak as the
court officials, wasting their time with ink battles, which has allowed even
women and monks to seize power. Date: 8th
month of 1843 Publisher: San (phonetic
pronunciation of 三) |
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Title: Copy of a
Scroll Painting of the Tosa School (Tosa e makimono no utsushi, 土佐画巻物之写) Description: Many figures
scurrying about, some fencing with pens, and others mixing ink to go into an
inkwell Date: 10th
month of 1860 Publisher: Echigo-ya Kajû |
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I am grateful to Robert Pryor for this alternate
state of the above design. |
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Title: A Picture of
the Carpenters of Hida Erecting Pillars (Hida no takumi hashiradate no zu) Description: The
construction of a kabuki theater
with actors in the lower half Date: 1842 Publisher: Iga-ya Kanemon |
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Another state of the above triptych with the names of the actors
removed. Probably the names were
deleted because they would have dated the print. |
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Title: Flowers of
Gold in Full Bloom (Zensei kogane no hana) Description: A man takes
gold coins (koban) from a wooden
tray table (sanbô)
throwing the money at the fighting crowd.
The scene shown in this print relates to the dream of every customer
of the pleasure quarters. Once in a lifetime one wants to own the most expensive,
exclusive courtesan (oiran)
of all Yoshiwara establishments. If one could
afford this huge amount of money, the event was celebrated in public, and the
lucky customer would shower the crowd with gold coins. Date: 12th
month of 1858 Publisher: Yamaguchi-ya Tôbei |
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Title: Suikoden,
Urashima Tarô (水滸伝, 浦島太郎) Poem: Suikoden From the abode of devils 108 creatures come forward Urashima Tarô opens the treasure box Description: Good spirits
(zendama)
and evil spirits (akudama)
are emerging from Urashima’s treasure box (tamatebako, 玉手箱) Date: 1842-1846
(censor Fukatsu Ihei) Publisher: Kita-ya Magobei |
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Title: Exhibition of
a Chrysanthemum with 100 Different Flowers (Hyakushu tsugi wake giku, 百種接分菊) Description: A large group of people is
admiring the colorful blossoms of a huge chrysanthemum tree grafted with many
different varieties Date: 9th
month of 1845 (censor Fukatsu Ihei) Publisher: Izuzen |
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Title: Getting Rid
of Sleepiness (Nemuke zamashi) Description: In the centre
of the scene is a group of fighting blind men. Two barking dogs, a rice seller and two
women are watching the fight. The image title Nemuke zamashi (Getting rid of sleepiness) is an illusion to
a battle of the blind. With their eyes closed, the blind seem to be sleeping.
In this fighting scene the blind are randomly hitting and beating in various
directions. Kuniyoshi seems to be
caricaturizing the disconcertment of Edo society. Date: 1846-1848 Publisher: Sagin |
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Title: Hyakushô kitsune ni bakasareru zu Description: A group of
eight men are dancing and singing in a rice field at harvest time. The inscription tells the story
of a sick man who was driven mad by a fox (kitsune). The eight farm workers taking the form of kitsune are depicted on a rice field
close to a village. The barely clothed
workers are singing and dancing while shape-shifting into foxes. One of the men is embracing a statue of Jizô Bosatsu, the guardian of
souls in hell. The two beauties (bijin)
depicted on top of a bale of straw are about to transform into foxes. The
foxes in the background are taking the shape of women. A group of people far away is looking with
lanterns for the men who have not returned home from their work in the
fields. Date: 1846 (censor
Murata) Publisher: Kyôji (京次) |
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Title: The Rônin
warrior of Sakamoto in Ômi Bewitched by the White
Fox (Kôshû Sakamoto irie
no rôshi byakko ni taburakasaruru zu) Description: Date: 1849 Publisher: Izutsu-ya Shôkichi |
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Title: Gôdô shini’e Description: Date: 1855 Publisher: NOTE: This print is
unsigned |
![Kuniyoshi - (triptych) Parody of Buddha's 16 Disciples [with Actor's Expressions] (Mitate jûroku rakan) , 1852(key)](Comic%20and%20Miscellaneous%20Triptychs%20and%20Diptychs,%20Part%20I_files/image026.jpg)
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