Onoe Kikugorō V as Igami no Gonta from the series One Hundred Roles of Baikō

Index from the series One Hundred Roles of Baikō

Japanese Color Woodblock Print

Onoe Kikugorō V as Igami no Gonta 

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. #2159

About This Print

The actors Onoe Kikugorō V as the villainous Igami no Gonta, the son of a sushi shop owner, and, in the top inset,  Bandō Kakitsu as the Geni general and retainer of Yoritomo, Kajiwara, in the play Yoshitsune senbon zakura (Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees). 

Originally written for the puppet theater in 1747, Yoshitsune and the Thousand Cherry Trees, is set in the aftermath of the twelfth-century Genji–Heike wars. The play follows the adventures of the military commander, Minamoto no Yoshitsune, as he tries to avoid capture by his jealous older brother, Minamoto no Yoritomo, and his loyal henchmen.
 
For profiles of Onoe Kikugorō V and Bandō Kakitsu 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 #2159
 Title (Description)Onoe Kikugorō V as Igami no Gonta and Bandō Kakitsu as Kajiwara [inset] in the play Yoshitsune senbon zakura. 
いかみの権太  魚屋宗五郎・梶原 坂東家橘・義経千本桜
 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): 印刷兼発行者

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 fair - light soiling throughout with circles of brown discoloration above left eye and on robe of actor; left margin partially trimmed; backed
 Genre ukiyo-e; yakusha-e
 Miscellaneous
print number 廿七 27 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 1/8 in. (34.4 x 23.2 cm)
 Literature 

 Collections This Print
 Waseda University Cultural Resource Database 007-2023; Tokyo Metropolitan Library 加5968(34)/加05968(034)
last update:
4/18/2021 created