Polyptychs of actors of four
or more sheets
Part II
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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 VII as Rai Shokuro (雷庄九郎) Fifth:
Onoe Kikugorô III as Karigane Bunshichi (雁金文七) Play: Theater: Date: 1835 Publisher: Kawaguchi-ya Chôzô NOTE: In this polyptych
and in the two following, the background is printed entirely in Prussian
blue, a style known as aizuri-e. Bandô Mitsugorô IV’s name is written as Bandô
Shûchô (坂東 秀調),
instead of as Bandô Mitsugorô
(坂東 三津五郎). |
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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 VII as Rai Shokuro (雷庄九郎) Fifth:
Onoe Kikugorô III as Karigane Bunshichi (雁金文七) Play: Theater: Date: 1835 Publisher: Edo-ya Matsugorô NOTE: This is another
state of the preceding pentaptych |
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Actors from left: Nakamura Utaemon IV as Tanzen (丹前)
and the Heron Maiden (鷺娘) Nakamura Utaemon IV
as Sukeroku (助六)
and his wife (旁妻) Nakamura Utaemon IV
as a boatman (船乗) and the Celestial Maiden (天女) Nakamura Utaemon IV
as Ameuri no Sekishô (飴売の夕照)
and in an unidentified role Play: Hanagoyomi iro no showake (花翫暦色所八景) Theater: Nakamura Date: 3rd month
of 1839 Publisher: Jôshû-ya Kinzô I am grateful to Lucienne Parkan for this image. |
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I am grateful to Robert Pryor for these sheets
from other states. |
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Title: Songs for Spring
Worth One Thousand Gold Coins (Shun ei, atai sen kin, 春詠價千金) Actors from left: First: Arashi Rikan II Second: Nakamura Kanjaku
II (died 1842) Third: Ichimura Kakitsu Fourth: Ichikawa Hakuen III Fifth: Iwai Shijaku
I Play: Probably Jidai
Sewa Hina no Danmaku (古今ひなの段幕) Theater: Date: c. 1840-1842 Publisher: Izumi-ya Ichibei I am grateful to Frederik Balhuizen and Josta Klaassen for this image. |
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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: 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 Ichikawa Danjûrô
VIII as wrestler Akitsushima Kuniemon
and Onoe Kikugorô III Matsumoto Koshirô VI
as Hori Fusaji (ほり房次) and
Sawamura Chôjûrô V as Lady Iwafuji
(局
岩藤) Ichikawa Danjûrô
VIII as Rai Kunitoshi (来国俊) and Bandô Shûka I
as Ohatsu (おはつ) Nakamura Utaemon IV
as Ishidome Busuke (石留武助) 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 (censors Mera and Murata) Theater: Ichimura Publisher: Iba-ya Sensaburô |
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Title: New Year’s First
Dream of Soga Seven Lucky Gods (Shichifukujin Soga
no hatsuyume, 七福神曽我之初夢) Description: Characters
from The Tale of the Soga Brothers in the guise of the seven
lucky gods Date: Early 1847 (censors
Mera and Murata) Publisher: Minato-ya Kohei |
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Actors from left:
Sawamura Sôjûrô V, Ichimura Uzaemon XII, Ichikawa Kuzô II,
Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII, and Nakamura Kanemon IV Date: 1847-1850 Publisher: Fujioka-ya Hikotarô |
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Title:
Pictures of the Evening Cool at Ryogôku (両國夕涼之圖) Description:
Actors off stage with fireworks near the Date:
1849 Publisher:
Kawaguchi-ya Shôzô (川口屋正蔵) |
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This polyptych, from 1850-1853, is composed of key block prints of
actors off-stage. A key block print is
an impression pulled from the first woodblock made by a carver from the
artist’s original drawing. The artist
would write instructions for each color on a separate key block print, and
the woodblock for each color was cut using one of these as a guide. In addition to being a guide for
carving the color woodblocks, the key block was also used to apply black ink
(usually) in the printing process. |
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Title: New Year’s
First Dream of Soga Seven Lucky Gods (Shichifukujin
Soga no hatsuyume, 七福神曽我之初夢) Description:
Characters from The Tale of the Soga
Brothers in the guise of the seven lucky gods Date: Early 1847 (censors Mera and Murata) Publisher: Minato-ya Kohei |
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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 III as Tobino Sashichi (鳶ノ佐七) 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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Actors from
left:
Sawamura Sôjûrô V, Ichimura Uzaemon
XII, Ichikawa Kuzô II, Ichikawa Danjûrô
VIII, and Nakamura Kanemon IV Date:
1847-1850 Publisher:
Fujioka-ya Hikotarô |
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Five actors in the dance Jidai Sewa
Hina no Danmaku with insets showing
actors in the play Kanadehon Chûshingura Actors from left: First: Bandô Shûka I as Taiko (太鼓); inset
is Ichimura Takenojô V as Ôboshi Yuranosuke (大星由良之助) Second: Arashi Kishisaburô III
as Otsuzumi (大鼓);
inset is Bandô Shûka I
as koshimoto Okaru (こし元於かる) Third: Ichikawa Kuzô
II as Kotsuzumi (小つゞみ);
inset is Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII as Hayano Kanpei (早野勘平) Fourth: Ichimura Takenojô V
as Utai (謡); inset is
Arashi Kishisaburô III as Ono Sadakuro (斧定九郎) Fifth: Ichikawa
Danjûrô VIII as Fue (笛); inset is Ichikawa Kuzô II as Takano Moronao (高の師直) Play: Jidai Sewa
Hina no Danmaku (古今ひなの段幕) Date: 2nd month
of 1851 (censors Hama and Magome) Theater: Ichimura Publisher: Te (phonetic reading of て) I am grateful to Robert Pryor for this image. |
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Another state of the above polyptych |
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Title of polyptych:
Stylish Handsome Faces in the Summer (Tôsei natsu no fuji bitai, 當盛夏の富士びたい) Actors from left: First: Iwai Kumesaburô III Second: Sawamura Chôjûrô V Third: Arashi Kichisaburô III Fourth: Bandô Shûka I Fifth: Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII 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 Ichikawa Danjûrô VIII Date: 6th month
of 1852 Publisher: Ebi-ya Rinnosuke |
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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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I am grateful to Robert Pryor for this
alternate state of the above design with the actor’s names. |
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Sheet from another state of the above
polyptych |
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