Polyptychs of four or more sheets
Part I
Unless otherwise noted, the individual panels are each about 14 by 10 inches (36 by 25 centimeters), a size known as ôban. I am grateful to Ward Pieters for assisting with this section.
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Title of polyptych: Tosenn sono Fuji bitai (とうせん其の富士びたい) Actors from left: First: Second: Third: Fourth: Bandô
Shûka I in a female role holding an open fan Fifth: Sawamura
Sôjûrô V holding a closed fan Play: Theater: Date: 6th
month of 1852 Publisher:
Ebi-ya Rinnosuke (海老屋林之助) |
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Actors: A
single sheet from another state of the above polyptych
showing Sawamura Sôjûrô V Play: Theater: Date: 6th
month of 1852 Publisher:
Ebi-ya Rinnosuke |
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Title on each sheet: Eight Views of Edo (Azuma hakkei uchi,
東八景内) Actors from left: First: Nakamura Utaemon IV as a toshima (mature woman, 旁妻) Text: Evening bell on the Sumida river (Sumida bansho, 隅田晩鐘) Second: Nakamura Utaemon IV as Tanzen (丹前) Text: 深川朧月 Third: Nakamura Utaemon IV as the boatman (船頭) Text: 高輪帰帆 Fourth: Nakamura Utaemon IV as the Dragon Princess (天女) Text: Falling geese at Shinobu
no oka (Shinobu no oka rakugan, 忍岡落雁) Play: Hanagoyomi iro no showake (花翫暦色所八景) Theater:
Nakamura Date: 3rd
month of 1839 Publisher:
Izumi-ya Ichibei |
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Actors from left: First: Onoe Matsusuke Second: Ichikawa Ebizô V as Dozaemon Denkichi (土左衛門伝吉) Third: Onoe
Kikugorô Fourth: Iwai Hanshirô VI as yaoya Oshichi (八百屋お七) Play: Sono mukashi koi no edozome (其往昔恋江戸染) Date: 1st
month of 1833 Theater: Kawarasaki Publisher:
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Title:
Flowers of Edo: Five Otokodate
(Edo no hana
no gonin otoko, 江戸の花五人男) Actors from left: First: Sawamura Tosshô I as Gokuin Chiemon (極印千右衛門) Second: Nakamura Shikan II as Otonai (安の平兵衛) Third: Bandô
Mitsugorô IV as Hotei Ichiemon (布袋市右衛門) Fourth: Ichikawa Danjûrô Fifth: Onoe Kikugorô Play: Theater: Date: 1835 Publisher:
NOTE: In
this polyptych and in the two following, the
background is printed entirely in Prussian blue, a style known as aizuri-e |
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Title:
Flowers of Edo: Five Otokodate
(Edo no hana
no gonin otoko, 江戸の花五人男) Actors from left: First: Sawamura Tosshô I as Gokuin Chiemon (極印千右衛門) Second: Nakamura Shikan II as Otonai (安の平兵衛) Third: Bandô
Mitsugorô IV as Hotei Ichiemon (布袋市右衛門) Fourth: Ichikawa Danjûrô Fifth: Onoe Kikugorô Play: Theater: Date: 1835 Publisher:
NOTE: This
is another state of the preceding pentaptych |
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Actors from left: First: Second: Bandô
Mitsugorô Play: Theater: Date: 1832 Publisher:
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Five actors as musicians
with insets showing their roles in the play Kanadehon Chûshingura Actors from left: First: Bandô
Shûka I with large drum (taiko, 太鼓); inset is Ichimura Takenojô V as Ôboshi Yuranosuke (大星由良之助) Second: Arashi
Kishisaburô with large hand drum (dai tsuzumi, 大鼓); inset is Bandô Shûka I as koshimoto Okaru (こし元於かる) Third: Ichikawa Kuzô II with small hand drum (shô tsuzumi, 小鼓); inset is Ichikawa Danjûrô
VIII as Hayano Kanpei (早野勘平) Fourth: Ichimura
Takenojô V chanting (yô, 謡); inset is Arashi Kishisaburô Fifth: Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII with
bamboo flute (fue,
笛); inset is Ichikawa Kuzô
II as Takano Moronao (高の師直) Play: Kanadehon Chûshingura
(仮名手本忠臣蔵) Date: 2nd
month of 1851 (censors Hama and Magome) Theater: Ichimura Publisher:
Te |
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Actors from left: First: Nakamura Kanjaku II (died 1842) Second: Ichimura
Kakitsu Third: Fourth: Iwai Shijaku I Play: Theater: Date: Publisher:
Izumi-ya Ichibei |
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Actors from left: First: Sawamura Sôjûrô V as Gokuin Chiemon (極印千右衛門) Second: Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII as Karigane Bunshichi (雁金文七) Third: Nakamura Utaemon IV as Hotei Ichiemon (布袋市右衛門) Fourth: Ichikawa Kuzô II as Otonai (安の平兵衛) Fifth: Matsumoto Koshirô VI as Rai Shokuro (雷庄九郎) Play: Theater: Date:
1846-1848 (censors Muramatsu and Yoshimura) Publisher:
Jôshû-ya Juzô |
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Title: 正名江戸っ子揃 Actors from left: First: Ichikawa Kuzô II as Otonai (安の平兵衛) Second: Ichikawa Ebizô V as Rai Shokuro (雷正九郎) Third: Ichimura
Uzaemon XII as Karigane Bunshichi (雁金文七) Fourth: Nakamura Utaemon IV as Hotei Ichiemon (布袋市右衛門) Fifth: Sawamura Tosshô I as Gokuin Chiemon (極印千右衛門) Play: Theater: Date: Not
later than 1842 Publisher:
Sôshû-ya Yohei |
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Another state of the above center
sheet with actor’s name changed Ichimura Uzaemon (市村羽左衛門) to from Iwai
Hanshirô (岩井半四郎) |
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This altered version of the
above design was published between 1846 and 1852 |
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Title:
None Actors from left: Ichikawa Ebizô V as Kaminari no Onaka (雷庄のおなか) Onoe Baikô Iwai Tojaku
I as Hotei no Oichi Play: A mitate (roles
not actually performed on stage) Date:
1832-1846 Publisher:
NOTE: Well
known actors are shown in female roles.
The resemblance to the Five Otokodate suggests that these three sheets are from a polyptych of five sheets.
I am grateful to Marc DeVriese for this
image. |
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Actors from left: First: Iwai Hanshirô VI as Maidzuru (まいづる) Second: Ichikawa Ebizô V as Soga
no Gorô Tokimune (五郎時宗) Third: Sawamura Tosshô I as Kudo Saemon (工藤祐つね) Fourth: Onoe
Kikugorô Play: Fuji Ogito Mimasu Soga (富士扇三升曽我) Date: 1st
month of 1833 Theater: Kawarasaki Publisher:
Yamaguchi-ya Tobei |
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Title: Teijo misaho kagami (貞女みさほかゞみ or てい女みさほ鏡) Description:
Actor in front of silhouettes of revelers in a greenhouse (brothel) Actors from left: First: Onoe
Kikugorô Second: Unidentified actor
as Fukuoka Mitsugi (福岡貢) subduing a foe Third: Sawamura
Sojûrô V Hachirobee (八郎兵衛) Fourth: Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII as Gengobei (源五兵へ) Fifth: Sawamura Chojûrô V as
Nagoya Sensaburô (名古屋山三) Play: Godairiki Koi no Fûjime (五大力恋緘) Theater: Date: 1846
or earlier Publisher:
Hon-ya Genpachi |
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Title: Mitate Kinryûzan kaichô no zu (見立金龍山開帳の図, Imaginary Scene of the Display of Secret Image at Kinryûzan Temple) Actors from left: Ichimura Uzaemon XII and Onoe Baikô IV Matsumoto Koshirô VI as ほり房次 and Sawamura Chôjûrô V as Lady Iwafuji (局 岩藤) Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII as 来国俊 and Bandô Shûka I as Ohatsu (おはつ) Nakamura Utaemon IV as 石☆武助 and
Onoe Kikujirô II as Oren
(おれん) Play: Hatsu Sakura Onoe no Iwafuji (初桜尾上岩藤) Date: 3rd
month of 1847 Theater: Ichimura Publisher:
Iba-ya Sensaburô |
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Polyptych title: Collection of Eight Ken Games of the East (Azuma
hakken shû, 東八拳集) Description:
Ôban polyptych
of actors playing ken
1. Sawamura Sôjûrô V Date: 7th
month of 1852 Publisher:
Mita-ya Kihachi (left two
sheets) and Yamaguchi-ya Tôbei
(right two sheets) |
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Title:
Parodies on the Five Elements (Mitate gogyô) Description:
Prince Genji watching beauties in a boat Date: 1848 Publisher: |
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Description:
Boys parading on the shore at sunset Date: c.
1840 Publisher:
Izumi-ya Ichibei |
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Title:
Modern Checkered Materials for Night Cooling among the Flowers (Tôji ichimatsu hana no yo-suzumi, 當時一松花の夜涼) Description:
Women in checkered robes, each standing before an oversized flower Date: c.
1848 Publisher:
Ki-ya Sôjirô NOTE:
These prints are listed as series number 112 in Kuniyoshi by Basil William Robinson (Victoria and Albert Museum,
London, 1961). However, the continuous
nature of the background suggests that these sheets were intended to be
placed side-by-side to form a polyptych. |
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Another state of the above
prints published by Iba-ya Kyûbei
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Title:
Illustration of the Second Floor from the Kadoebiya
Pleasure House in Shin-Yoshiwara Date: c.
1840-1850 Publisher:
No seal |
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Description:
Bijin
dressed as otokodate,
separated by stylized cloud bands Date:
1846-1852 Publisher:
Kame-ya Iwakichi |
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Beauties from left: First: Matsu
Kicho of the Nomatsuya in
Second: Toyoka
of the Okamotoya with her kamuro Kiyono
and Hanano Third: Tamasho
of the Yatama with her kamuro Hazsune
and Iroka Fourth: Usugumo
(薄雲) of the Tama-ya Fifth: Hanao
of the Ôgi-ya Date: c.
1838 Publisher:
Sano-ya Kihei |
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Description:
Unidentified actors Date:
1846-1849 Publisher:
Fujioka-ya Keijirô NOTE: The
three sheets on the right have seals of censors Muramatsu and Yoshimura,
dating them to 1846-1848. The two left
hand sheets have seals of censors Kinugasa and Yoshimura, dating them to
1849. Most likely, the three right
sheets were conceived as a triptych that was later expanded. |
