About This Print
Identical remarks/notes on this print by the National Diet Library (see their print 1301780) and Tokyo Metropolitan Library (see their print 5721-C96) reading 明治９年は中村・新堀座の合併興行, lead me to believe that the publication of this print coincided with the change of ownership in the Kawarazaki theater sometime in 1876 to a new group of investors who renamed the theater the Shinbori. The presence of chrysanthemums indicates that this print is marking an auspicious occasion. The background text which would shed more light on the circumstances of this print is untranslated.The Actors Pictured
From right to left:Iwai Hanshirō VIII 岩井半四郎
Ichikawa Danjūrō IX 市川団十郎
Ichikawa Shinjūrō II 市川新十郎 (formerly Ichikawa Fukuen 市川福猿 )
Nakamura Nakazō III 中村仲蔵
For background on the actors see their respective entries in the article The Kabuki Actor on this site.
Print Details
| IHL Catalog | #1138 | ||
| Title (Description) | Iwai Hanshirō VIII, Ichikawa Danjūrō IX, Ichikawa Shinjūrō II and Nakamura Nakazō III (1876 merger of Kawarazaki and Shinbori Theatres) 岩井半四郎 市川団十郎 市川新十郎 中村仲蔵 | ||
| Artist | Toyohara Kunichika (1835–1900) | ||
| Signature |
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| Seal | toshidama seal below signature | ||
| Publication Date | July 1876 (明治09) | ||
| Publisher |
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| Carver |
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| Impression | excellent | ||
| Colors | excellent | ||
| Condition | fair - soiling; rubbing; paper thinning; trimmed right and left margins | ||
| Genre | ukiyo-e; yakusha-e | ||
| Miscellaneous | |||
| Format | vertical oban diptych | ||
| H x W Paper | 13 5/8 x 9 3/8 in. (34.6 x 23.8 cm) left sheet 13 5/8 x 9 3/16 in. (34.6 x 23.3 cm) left sheet | ||
| Literature | | ||
| Collections This Print | Tokyo Metropolitan Library 5721-C96; National Diet Library 1301780 |
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