Warrior triptychs
1832-1835
Title: Yamashiro no kuni Kasagi ishi-ie kassen no
zu (The Battle of Kasagi Castle
in Yamashiro Province, 山城之国笠城之石家合戦之図) Description:
Defence of Publisher:
Tsuru-ya Kiemon Date: c.
1832 Robinson:
T19 |
I am grateful to Marc DeVriese for this alternate state of the above design. |
Title: Kuramayama no zu Description:
Ushiwaka Maru practicing fencing with the tengu
under the direction of Sôjô-bô with Kisanda in attendance Publisher:
Ômi-ya Heihachi (listed as Yezaki-ya Tatsuzô in Robinson) Date: c.
1832 Robinson:
T20 |
Title: Ôeyama Shuten-dôji shûzui no zu (The
Drinking Party of the Shutendôji at Mount Ôe, 大江山酒天童子酒宴之図) Description:
The drinking bout of Raikô and his retainers with the Shuten-dôji in the
latter’s palace on Publisher:
Daikoku-ya Heikichi Date: c.
1832 Robinson:
T21 |
Title: Nitta Ashikaga ô-watashi ô-kassen Description:
Nitta Yoshisada and his troops swimming across a river (probably the Iruma
River) by a broken bridge to attack a fortified position on the opposite bank
Publisher:
Sôshû-ya Yohei Date:
c.1832 Robinson:
T22 |
Title: Description:
Sasaki Takatsuna (佐々木 高綱)
and Kajiwara Kagetoki (梶原 景時) leading troops at the battle of Publisher:
Date:
c.1832 Robinson:
T22a (not in Robinson) I am grateful to Vana
Johnson for this image. |
Title: Gyakushin Masakado wa Rokurô Kintsura ga
isame no etc. Description:
Musashi Gorô Sadayo striking Rokurô Kintsura with his fan before the latter’s
brother Masakado Publisher:
Akamatsu-ya Shôtarô Date: c.
1833-1834 Robinson:
T23 |
I am grateful to Marc
DeVriese for this alternate state of the above design. |
This is an altered version
of the above triptych to depict a scene from an 1834 production of the kabuki play Tokiwa Ima Shusse no Ukesho (時今出世券). The actors
from left to right are Bandô Mitsugorô IV as Takechi Mitsuhide, Iwai Hanshirô VI as Ranmaru,
and Sawamura Tosshô I as Harunaga. Date: 9th
month of 1834 Theater:
Morita Publisher:
Akamatsu-ya Shôtarô |
Title: Shimotsuke no kuni Nasu no hara kimmô
hakumen kyûbi no akko taiji no zu Description:
The Nine-tailed Fox slain on Nasu moor by Miura-no-suke Tsunetane and Kazusa
no Suke Hirotsune Publisher:
Yamaguchi-ya Tôbei Date: c.
1834 Robinson:
T24 I am grateful to Marc
DeVriese for this image. |
Title: Yoshinaka hata-age kassen no zu Description:
The first battle at the erecting of Yoshinaka’s standard in Shinano (1180):
Jô Shirô Nagamochi on horseback (left) cutting at Tayû-bô Kakumei (center),
and Tomoe-gozen killing Kurotsuka Hachirô (right) Publisher:
Takenouchi Magohachi Date: c.
1834 Robinson:
T25 NOTE: This
triptych was reissued in 1845 with numerous alterations as T160. The title was changed to Takeda Uesugi Kawanakajima ô-kassen no zu,
Nagamochi became Uesugi Kenshin, Tayû-bô became Takeda Shingen and the right
hand sheet blocks were recut to eliminate Tomoe-gozen. I am grateful to Ward
Pieters for locating this image. |
Title: Engen gwan-nen go-gwatsu nijûgo-nichi
Minatogawa ô-kassen (Great
Battle of the Minato River on the 25th Day of the Fifth Month, 1336, 延元元年五月二十五日湊川大合戦) Description:
The battle of the Minatogawa on Publisher:
Tsuru-ya Kiemon Date: c.
1834 Robinson:
T26 I am grateful to Marc
DeVriese for this image. |
Title:
Untitled Description:
Raikô cutting off the head of the monster Shuten Dôji, which springs in the
air. Raikô’s four chief retainers (shitennô) are shown, left to right,
Usui Sadamitsu, Sakata no Kintoki, Hirai Yasumasa, Urabe Suetake, and Genji
Tsuna (killing a demon) Publisher:
Sano-ya Kihei Date:
c.1835 Robinson:
T26a |
Title: Kanshin mata-kuguri no zu (韓信骻潜之圖, The Humility of Kanshin) Description: Kanshin
crawling between the legs of a fisherman, to the amusement of the latter’s
companions Publisher:
Sano-ya Kihei Date: c.
1835 Robinson:
T27 |
Another state of the above
design |
A later printing, c. 1843,
with the seal of the censor, Tanaka |
Title: Sanada no Yoichi Yoshihisa, Matano no Gorô
Kagehisa (真田与市能久 俣野五郎景久, Sanada no Yoichi
Yoshihisa and Matano no Gorô Kagehisa) Description:
Struggle between Yoshihisa and Kagehisa at the Publisher:
Yamaguchi-ya Tôbei Date: c.
1835 Robinson:
T28 NOTE: The
name “Yoshihisa” was erroneously substituted for “Yoshitada”. |
Another state of the above
design |
Title: Igagoe kataki-uchi no zu (The Igagoe
Revenge, 伊賀越敵討図) Description:
Karaki Masaemon (center) fighting against superior forces; Busuke and Magohachi
defending a bridge (right); spectators in the background Publisher:
Yamashiro-ya Jinbei (山甚板) Date:
c.1835 Robinson:
T29 NOTE:
Kuniyoshi’s signature, the censor’s seal, and the publisher’s seal are on the
wooden post in the left sheet. |
This triptych differs from
the previous state in that the publisher’s seal (best seen on the wooden post
in the left sheet) is that of Sôshû-ya Yohei (近總與) instead of Yamashiro-ya Jinbei (山甚板). |
Title: Description:
Ise no Kami Yoshitsune (伊後守義経) and his retainer Kumai Tarô (熊井 太郎)
preparing to defend Horikawa Palace against the attack of Tosa-bô Shôshun (土佐坊昌俊) and his men, who are seen approaching in the
background. Publisher:
not indicated on the one sheet seen by Robinson Date:
c.1835 Robinson:
T29a NOTE: This
is the right-hand sheet of a triptych |
“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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