About This Print
One of fifty prints in the series Fifty Noh Figures in Color. This print depicts the ghost of Taira no Tomomori holding his long sword. He intends to send Yoshitsune to a watery grave.
For another depiction of this play by the artist see Funa Benkei from the album Nō Sugata.
The Play - Funa Benkei by Kanze Kojirō Nobumitsu,
Source: A Guide to No, P.G. O'Neill, Hinoki Shoten, 1929, p. 35-36.
By Kojirō
Fifth Group
All schools
Characters:
Source: A Guide to No, P.G. O'Neill, Hinoki Shoten, 1929, p. 35-36.
By Kojirō
Fifth Group
All schools
Fifth Group
All schools
Characters:
Act 1:Ko-kata - Minamoto no ToshitsuneWaki - BenkeiWaki-tsure - three retainersKyōgen - a boatmanShite - Shizuka Fozen
Act 2:Nochi-shite - the ghost of Tomomori
Benkei explains that in an attempt to clear himself of the suspicion which Yoritomo has about his younger brother's intentions, Yoshitsune has left the capital and come down to Daimotsu Bay. There Shizuka Gozen joins her lover Yoshitsune, but as Benkei insists that she must return to the capital, they have a farewell party at which Shizuka dances, and then she goes off alone. Yoshitsune and his men then put out to sea in a boat, but suddenly black clouds form, the seas rise, and the ghost of Taira no Tomomori comes upon them. It tries to seize Yoshitsune and carry him down into the sea to suffer the same fate as Tomomori himself, but is eventually driven off by the priestly poser of Benkei.
Benkei explains that in an attempt to clear himself of the suspicion which Yoritomo has about his younger brother's intentions, Yoshitsune has left the capital and come down to Daimotsu Bay. There Shizuka Gozen joins her lover Yoshitsune, but as Benkei insists that she must return to the capital, they have a farewell party at which Shizuka dances, and then she goes off alone. Yoshitsune and his men then put out to sea in a boat, but suddenly black clouds form, the seas rise, and the ghost of Taira no Tomomori comes upon them. It tries to seize Yoshitsune and carry him down into the sea to suffer the same fate as Tomomori himself, but is eventually driven off by the priestly poser of Benkei.
The Series - Fifty Noh Figures in ColorEach print in the series depicts a main character from a Noh play and is tipped to the top edge of a solid-colored woodblock-printed backing sheet featuring the three small pines appearing along the higashigakari 橋掛 (bridgeway) stretching from the main stage to the kagami-no-ma (mirror room) where the performers gather before going on stage. The trees are printed with a dark gold metallic pigment, a deluxe printing technique.
一
翁
No. 1
Okina二
高砂
No. 2
Takasago三
田村
No. 3
Tamura四
羽衣
No. 4
Hagoromo五
鞍馬天狗
No. 5
Kurama tengu六
竹生島
No. 6
Chikubushima七
景淸
No. 7
Kagekiyo八
態野
No. 8
Yuya十一
玉井
No. 11
Tamanoi十二
俊寬
No. 12
Shunkan十四
鐵輪
No. 14
Kanawa十五
船辨慶
No. 15
Funda Benkei十六
養老
No. 16
Yōrō十七
賴政
No. 17
Yorimasa十八
遊行柳
No. 18
Yugyō yanagi十九
石橋
No. 19
Shakkyō二〇
石橋
No. 20
Shakkyō二一
張良
No. 21
Chōryō二二
蟬丸
No. 22
Semimaru二三
姨捨
No. 23
Obasute二四
安達原
No. 24
Adachi ga
hara二五
調伏會我
No. 25
Chōbuku Soga二六
延命冠者
No. 26
Enmei kanja二七
箙
No. 27
Ebira二八
胡蝶
No. 28
Kochō二九
求塚
No. 29
Motomezuka三〇
雷電
No. 30
Raiden三一
難波
No. 31
Naniwa三二
花月
No. 32
Kagetsu三三
葵上
No. 33
Aoi no ue三四
弱法帥
No. 34
Yoroboshi三五
殺生石
No. 35
Sesshōseki三六
鍾馗
No. 36
Shōki三七
經政
No. 37
Tsunemasa三八
道成寺
No. 38
Dōjōji三九
藤戶
No. 39
Fujito四〇
鵺
No. 40
Nue四一
項羽
No. 41
Kōu四二
融
No. 42
Tōru四三
玉葛
No. 43
Tamakazura四四
山姥
No. 44
Yamanba四五
土蜘蛛
No. 45
Tsuchigomo四六
金札
No. 46
Kinsatsu四七
熊坂
No. 47 Kumasaka四八
三井寺
No. 48
Miidera四九
一角仙人
No. 49
Ikkaku Sennin五〇
猩々
No. 50
Shōjō
Print Details
| IHL Catalog | #2077 |
| Title | Funa Benkei 船弁慶 (Benkei in the Boat) label verso 船弁慶 後* * 後 ato-shite, (also nochi-shite) the main protagonist of the second act. |
| Series | Fifty Noh Figures in Color 能姿五十彩 |
| Artist | Matsuno Sōfū (1899-1963) |
| Signature |  |
| Seal | unread seal beneath signature (see above) |
| Date | June 1938 |
| Edition | first and only |
| Publisher | 謡曲界発行所 Yōkyoku-kai hakkōsho [Noh song publishing house] |
| Carver | unknown |
| Printer | unknown |
| Impression | excellent |
| Colors | excellent |
| Condition | excellent |
| Genre | nishiki-e; nōgaku zue 能樂圖繪 [Noh play picture] or 能絵 [Noh-e] |
| Miscellaneous | |
| Format | oban |
| H x W Paper | print: 7 15/16 x 5 9/16 in. (20.2 x 14.1 cm) backing sheet: 12 x 9 5/16 in. (30.5 x 23.7) |
| H x W Image | print: 7 5/8 x 5 3/8 in. (19.4 x 13.7 cm) |
| Collections This Print | Art Research Center, Ritsumeikan University AcNo. arcUP2611 |
| Reference Literature |
last update:
11/14/2019 created
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