Stories of One Hundred Heroes of High Renown,

Part II

 

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31.21), Taira no Tomomori, in a cap and court robes over armor, seated on a tiger skin with a coral sword rack behind

 

Scene: Taira no Tomomori (平知盛), in a cap and court robes over armor, seated on a tiger skin with a sword rack made from red coral behind

Robinson: S31.21

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

Scene: Tomoe-jo (written on the print as Tomoe, 鞆繪女) in armor adjusting her hair before a large mirror

Robinson: S31.22

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

Scene: Watanabe no Tsuna (渡邉綱) seated in full court robes with offerings (gohei) behind him

Robinson: S31.23

 

Scene: Minamoto no Yorimasa (源頼政) standing in court robes and holding his bow

Robinson: S31.24

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31.25), Minamoto no Yorimitsu (Raikô) dancing bareheaded in wide court trousers

 

Scene: Minamoto no Yorimitsu (源頼光), also known as Raikô, dancing bareheaded in wide court trousers

Robinson: S31.25

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31.26), Minamoto no Yoritomo seated on a fur-covered stool holding a fan and wearing wide trousers (Alt. II)

 

Scene: Minamoto no Yoritomo (源頼朝) seated on a fur-covered stool holding a fan and wearing wide trousers

Robinson: S31.26

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

Scene: Asahina Yoshihide (朝夷義秀) in armor, a long sword (nodachi) slung on his back, holding a large iron club and the piece of armor he tore from Soga Gorô

Robinson: S31.27

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

Scene: Genda Yoshihira (源太義平) bareheaded and armored holding a sword in his right hand and gesturing with his left

Robinson: S31.28

 

 

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31.29), Minamoto no Yoshi-iye, bareheaded in court robes, holding a bow and fan looking at arrow stuck in ground

 

Scene: Minamoto no Yoshiie (源義家), bareheaded in court robes, holding a bow and fan looking at an arrow stuck in the ground

Robinson: S31.29

 

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

This is another example of the above print.  The red and yellow inks are faded, as can be seen in the title cartouche and fan, respectively.  The outer kimono is dark blue instead of purple because the rich purple color was probably achieved by printing red ink over blue.

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

Yet another state of the above design

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31.30) Ise Saburô Yoshimori seated on a rock with a huge axe (Alt

 

Scene: Ise Saburô Yoshimori (伊勢三郎義盛) seated on a rock with a huge axe

Robinson: S31.30

 

Scene: Minamoto no Yoshinaka ( 義仲) seated on a tiger-skin in full armor with surcoat, holding a general's baton and his helmet on a stand behind

Robinson: S31.31

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

Scene: Nitta Yoshisada (新田義貞) seated on a tiger-skin playing a small drum

Robinson: S31.32

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

Scene: Sanada Yoichi Yoshitada (佐奈田與市義忠) in hunting dress holding a bow and raising his hat

Robinson: S31.33

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

Scene: Minamoto no Yoshitomo (源義朝) seated on a stool in full armor with a cup of sake in his hand

Robinson: S31.34

 

Scene: Minamoto no Yoshitsune (源義經) in full armor and surcoat seated on a tiger-skin with his hand on an armrest

Robinson: S31.35

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

Scene: Kumagaya Naozane (熊谷直實) seated in armor with Atsumori’s flute before him

Robinson: S31.36

Kuniyoshi - Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown (S31

 

Scene: Wada Yoshimori (和田義盛) seated in court robes over armor

Robinson: unlisted

This series is one of several of Kuniyoshi’s that are similar in appearance, having a single full-length figure on a more-or-less plane background with a descriptive text above.  While some of these have the series title in distinctively shaped cartouches, several have the series titles in vertical red cartouches with convex tops and concave bottoms.  This latter group of title cartouches is reproduced below.

Stories of a hundred heroes of high renown

Series title in Japanese: Meikô hyaku den

Series title in English: Stories of 100 Heroes of High Renown:

Robinson: S31

Stories of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Samurai (S54)

Series title in Japanese: Seichû gishi den

Series title in English: Stories of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Samurai

Robinson: S54, except S54.38 and some copies of S54.39

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Series title in Japanese: Seichû gishi den no okori

Series title in English: Origins of Stories of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Samurai

Robinson: S54.38 and some copies of S54.39

Kuniyoshi - Origin of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Samurai (S55

Series title in Japanese: Seichû gishi hottan

Series title in English: Origins of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Samurai

Robinson: S55

Stories of Faithful Hearts and True Loyalty (S56)

Series title in Japanese: Seichû gishin den

Series title in English: Stories of Faithful Hearts and True Loyalty

Robinson: S56

Stories of Corageous Generals of the Provinces of Echigo & Kai (S63

Series title in Japanese: Kôetsu yûshô den

Series title in English: Stories of Courageous Generals of the Provinces of Echigo and Kai

Robinson: S63

 

“Robinson” refers to listing in Kuniyoshi: The Warrior-Prints by Basil William Robinson (Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, 1982) and its privately published supplement.

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