About This Print
The three actors (R to L) Ichikawa Danjūrō IX in the role of Tomoe gozen, Onoe Kikugorō V as Yoshinaka, named the "asahi general" by Emperor Go-daigo, and Nakamura Fukusuke IV as Yamabuki gozen in the play Haiyū mitate Asahi shō gun'ei chū no zu.While I can find no information on this play, its characters are drawn from the Tale of Heike which tells the story of Minamoto no Yoshinaka and Tomoe gozen, the famous woman warrior of the Genpei Wars between the Taira and Minamoto clans.
Source: The Tale of the Heike, Helen Craig McCullough, Stanford University Press, 1988, p. 291.
Kiso no Yoshinaka had brought with him from Shinano two female attendants, Tomoe and Yamabuki. Yamabuki had fallen ill and stayed at the capital. Of the two, Tomoe was especially beautiful, with white skin, long hair, and charming features. She was also a remarkably strong archer, and as a swordswoman she was a warrior worth a thousand, ready to confront a demon or god, mounted or on foot. She handled unbroken horses with superb skill;; she rode unscathed down perilous descents. Whenever battle was imminent, Yoshinaka sent her out as his first captain, equipped with strong armor, an oversized sword, and a mighty bow; and she performed more deeds of valor than any of his other warriors. Thus she was now one of the seven who remained after all the others had fled or perished.
The Actors Pictured
For information on the actors see the article The Kabuki Actor on this site.
Print Details
| IHL Catalog | #801 |
| Title (Description) | Ichikawa Danjūrō IX in the role of Tomoe gozen, Onoe Kikugorō V as Yoshinaka and Nakamura Fukusuke IV as Yamabuki gozen in the play Haiyū mitate asahi shō gun'ei chū no zu 巴御前 [9]市川団十郎, 義仲 [5]尾上菊五郎, 山吹御前 [4]中村福助 俳優見立 旭将軍營中図 |
| Artist | Toyohara Kunichika (1835–1900) |
| Signature |  |
| Seal | red Toshidama seal beneath signature 年玉印 |
| Publication Date |  |
| Publisher |  |
| Carver |  |
| Impression | excellent |
| Colors | excellent |
| Condition | good - full-size separate sheets; unbacked; light toning; wrinkling throughout; horizontal folds fright seet |
| Genre | ukiyo-e; nigao-e; yakusha-e |
| Miscellaneous | |
| Format | vertical oban triptych |
| H x W Paper | right sheet: 14 9/16 x 9 1/2 in. (37 x 24.1 cm) center sheet: 14 1/2 x 9 5/8 in. (36.8 x 24.4) left sheet: 14 5/16 x 9 11/16 in. (36.4 x 24.6) |
| H x W Image | right sheet: 14 3/16 x 9 1/2 in. (36 x 24.1 cm) center sheet: 14 x 9 7/16 in. (35.6 x 24 cm) left sheet: 14 3/8 x 9 1/4 in. (36.5 x 23.5 cm) |
| Literature | |
| Collections This Print | The Tsubouchi Memorial Theatre Museum of Waseda University 007-1762, 007-0163, 007-0164; Ritsumeikan ARC AcNo. MMS125_01-03 CoGNo. MMS125; Shizuoka Prefectural Central Library K915-108-026-008 |
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