Onoe Kikugorō V as Hayano Kampei from the series One Hundred Roles of Baikō

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Onoe Kikugorō V as Shinohara Kunimoto from the series One Hundred Roles of Baikō

Japanese Color Woodblock Print

Onoe Kikugorō V as Hayano Kanpei

from the series One Hundred Roles of Baikō

by Toyohara Kunichika, 1893

Ichikawa Danjūrō IX as Mongaku Shonin from the series One Hundred Roles of Ichikawa Danjuro

IHL Cat. #2158

About This Print

The actors Onoe Kikugorō V as Hayano Kanpei, and, in the top inset, Iwai Hanshirō VIII (1829-1882) as Okaru, Kanpei's lover then wife, in the play Kanadehon Chūshingura (The Treasury of Loyal Retainers).

The play is based on the real-life Akō Incident (1701-1703) in which forty-seven retainers of Lord Asano (the character Enya Hangan in the play) take revenge against the shogun's court official Kira Yoshinaka (the character Ko no Moronao in the play), whose actions caused the death of their lord. Hayano Kanpei is the fictitious name in the play for the real-life Kayano Sanpei, a young retainer of Asano's, who was caught in the dilemma of agreeing to be part of the revenge plot against Kira and then being offered into the service of another lord by his parents. Trapped in a situation where he will either disgrace his family by not fulfilling their offer of his service or disgracing himself by not fulfilling his pledge of revenge, he commits suicide.

For profiles of Onoe Kikugorō V and Iwai Hanshirō VIII please see the article The Kabuki Actor.

The Series "One Hundred Roles of Baikō"
Source: Time Present and Time Past: Images of a Forgotten Master: Toyohara Kunichika (1835-1900), Amy Reigle Newland, Hotei Publishing, 1999, p. 26, 27.

In 1893 Kunichika undertook a commission for two series of single-sheet portraits, each dedicated to the two most famous actors of their time, Ichikawa Danjūrō IX (1838-1903) and Onoe Kikugorō V (1844-1903). The first of these, One hundred roles of Danjūrō, featured the major roles of Ichikawa Danjūrō IX in a set of half-length portraits. (See print IHL Cat. #s 663, 689 and 701.) The second, One hundred roles of Baikō, featured the major roles of Onoe Kikugorō V and included an insert on the top of the print depicting a supporting actor. Both the series were commissioned by Fukuda Kumajirō and Gusokuya Kahei. These two series are regarded as ‘monuments to his [Kunichika’s] career’.

The name "Baikō" in the series title was the haiku pen name of Onoe Kikugorō V and Kunichika was on friendly terms with him, often drinking tea and chatting backstage.

Print Details

IHL Catalog	#2158
Title (Description)	Onoe Kikugorō V as Hayano Kanpei and Iwai Hanshirō as Okaru [inset] in the play Kanadehon Chūshingura 早野勘平魚屋宗五郎・おかる故岩井半四郎・仮名手本忠臣
Series	One Hundred Roles of Baikō 梅幸百種之内 Baikō hyakushu no uchi
Artist	Toyohara Kunichika (1835–1900)
Signature	豊原国周筆 Toyohara Kunichika hitsu
Seal	Toshidama seal 年玉印 [see above]
Publication Date	明治廿六年八月日印刷仝月日発行. printed and published August 1893
Publisher	Fukuda Kumajirō left (printer and publisher): 臨写印刷兼発行者 [Rinsha insatsu ken hakkōsha] center (publisher's address): 東京日本橋区長谷川町十九番地 19 banchi Hasegawa-chō, Nihonbashi-ku, Tokyo right (publisher's name and seal): 福田熊次郎人形丁具足屋板 Fukuda Kumajirō Ningyōchō Gusokuya, han [Marks: pub. ref. 071; seal ref. 26-075]
Carver	Nisei Hori Ei 二卋彫栄
Impression	excellent
Colors	excellent
Condition	good - light soiling throughout, left margin partially trimmed; backed
Genre	ukiyo-e; yakusha-e
Miscellaneous	print number 五十 50 in the series
Format	vertical ōban
H x W Paper	14 3/8 x 9 5/8 in. (36.5 x 24.4 cm)
H x W Image	13 9/16 x 9 3/16 in. (34.4 x 23.3 cm)
Literature
Collections This Print	Waseda University Cultural Resource Database 007-1989; Tokyo Metropolitan Library 加5968(45)/加05968(045)

last update:

4/18/2021 created