Famous Views of Edo Selected for the Twelve Months

(Edo meisho mitate jûnikagetsu no uchi, 江戸名所十二ヶ月の内)

Publisher: Yahata-ya Sakujirô

1852

This series shows bust portraits of kabuki actors in character against landscapes. Each print is associated with a different month. The cartouche in the right upper corner is bordered by objects from the play. This series is listed as number 210 in Kuniyoshi by Basil William Robinson (Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1961). The prints in this series are each about 14 by 10 inches (36 by 25 centimeters), a size known as ôban. I am indebted to Guy Pepermans and Ward Pieters for supplying the descriptions of these prints.

Number: 1

Location: Asakusa

Actor: Onoe Kikugorô IV as the courtesan Miyagino (宮城野)

Play: Go Taiheiki Shiraishi Banashi

Number: 2

Location: Ôji

Actor: Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII as Kosan no Kingorô

Play: Shinyoshiwara Suzume

Date of play: 10^th month of 1852

Theater: Kawarasaki

Number: 3

Location: Ueno (上埜)

Actor: Ichikawa Ebizô V as Fuwa Banzaemon (不破伴左衛門)

Play: Ukiyozuka Hiyoku no Inazuma

Date of play: 6^th month of 1852

Number: 4

Location: Kameido (亀井戸)

Actor: Arashi Kichisaburô III as the sake seller Teranishi Kanshin (寺西閑心)

Play: Sugawara denju Tenarai kagami

Number: 5

Location: Takanawa

Actor: Iwai Kumesaburô III as Ofune (おふ, daughter of the ferryman Tonbei)

Play: Shinrei Yaguchi no watashi (also known as Ofune)

Number: 6

Location: Sanno Festival

Actor: Nakamura Utaemon IV as Danshichi Kurobei (団七九郎兵衛)

Play: Zôho Naniwa kagami

NOTE: This is a posthumous portrait from a play performed in the 7^th month of 1845

Number: 7

Location: Sumida River

Actor: Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII as Motome (求女)

Play: Imoseyama onna teikin

Date of play: 2^nd month of 1852

Theater: Kawarasaki

Number: 8

Location: Main gate of the Yoshiwara (吉原)

Actor: Bandô Shûka I as Kaku no Kosan (がくの小さん)

Play:

Another state of the above design

Number: 9

Location: Sugamo (巣鴨)

Actor: Probably Arashi Rikan III as Chienai (智恵内)

Play:

Number: 10

Location: Umi Shizuka Tera

Actor: Ichikawa Kodanji IV as Asakura

Play: Higashiyama Sakura sôshi (東山桜荘子, The Higashiyama Storybook)

Date of play: 8^th month of 1851

Theater: Nakamura

Number: 11

Location: Hori no Uchi

Actor: Ichikawa Danjurô VIII as Katsuyori

Play: Honchô nijûshikô

Number: 12

Location: Ryôgoku

Actor: Bandô Hikasaburô IV as Ôboshi Yuranosuke

Play: Yayoi no hana iroha no honsetsu (宿花いろは本説)

Date of play: 3^rd month of 1852

Theater: Nakamura

This is one of several series of prints Kuniyoshi designed consisting of bust portraits with irregularly shaped cartouches in the right upper corner. In each of these series, the cartouche is bordered by small pictures. The table below shows a typical cartouche from each of these series as well as the script within the cartouche that identifies the series. The color of the cartouches is not a reliable guide to identifying the series, as it may vary with successive printings.

		English title: Mirror of the Loyal Courage of the Faithful Retainers Japanese title: Chûshin giyû kagami Description: Bust of an actor as one of the Forty-seven Rônin with a landscape background
		English title: Famous Views of Edo Selected for the Twelve Months Japanese title: Edo meisho mitate jû-ni ka gwatsu no uchi Description: Bust of actor with landscape in upper half of print above a stylized cloud
		English title: Selection for the Twelve Signs Japanese title: Mitate jûnishi no uchi Description: Bust of an actor with a full-length figure of another actor in a landscape as a background
		English title: Set of Views of Fuji from Edo in Iroha Order Japanese title: Nanatsu iroha Tôto Fuji zukushi Description: Actor’s bust with landscape showing Mount Fuji inserter in the left upper corner
		English title: Celebrated Products of Mountains and Seas Japanese title: Sankai medetai zue Description: Bust of beautiful woman with insert of landscape showing provincial industry in left upper corner NOTE: Various scripts were used in this series, but the two kanji shown at left are most consistent
		English title: Thirty-six Fashionable Restaurants of the Eastern Capital Japanese title: Tôto ryûkô san-jû-rokkwaiseki Description: Bust of actor with restaurant in background
		English title: Military Brilliance for the Eight Views Japanese title: Yôbu hakkei Description: Bust of a military hero in a landscape

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