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Nōgakuzue, Kirokuda

Nōgakuzue, Kōya monogurui
 

 Japanese Color Woodblock Print

Kirokuda 木六駄

(Kyōgen 狂言)

(Six Loads of Firewood)

from the series Nōgakuzue

by Tsukioka Kōgyo, 1901

Nōgakuzue, Tankai

IHL Cat. #209

About This Print

One of 261 prints from the series gakuzue (Illustrations of Noh).  It illustrates a scene in the kyōgen play Kirokuda (Six Loads of Firewood) in which Tarōkaja trudges through a blizzard, snow piled on his straw hat and cloak, driving six oxen carrying firewood and six others carrying charcoal over a mountain pass.  The oxen are never seen in the play and the actor must be convincing in his portrayal.

"Of course, the stage is actually bare and the whole business is manifested through text and pantomime. This section in the play is a uniquely realistic one, and therefore considered a very difficult part in the kyōgen repertoire."1

1 "Melodic Speech Patterns in the Traditional Japanese Kyogen Theatre: A Strategy of Contrasting Structures," Zvika Serper appearing in Journal of Dramatic Theory and Criticism, Spring 2001, p. 107

The Play - Kirokuda

Source: Nō and Bunraku: Two Forms of Japanese Theatre, Donald Keene, Keizō Kaneko, Columbia University Press, 1990, p.91.

A certain gentleman sends his servant Tarōkaja with six ox-loads of lumber and a cask of sake for his uncle. It is bitter cold, and Tarōkaja, stopping at an inn, drinks some of the sake to warm himself. As he gets drunk he explains to the proprietor how he plans to catch in his arms a quail, to eat with the liquor.

Print Details

 IHL Catalog #209
 Title Kirokuda 木六駄 (Six Loads of Firewood)
 Series Nōgakuzue 能樂圖繪 (Illustrations of Noh)
 Artist 
 Tsukioka Kōgyo (1869-1927)
 Signature 
 Kōgyo 耕 漁
 Seal
Red letter seal in a hexagonal shape: 六花 [Rikka]
 Date Printed on April 1, 1901 / Issued on April 5, 1901 (Meiji 34)
明治三十四年五月一日 印刷仝年仝月五日発行
 Edition unknown
 Publisher Matsuki Heikichi (Daikokuya Heikichi 大黒屋平) [Marks: pub. ref. 029]
 Carver 
 Impression excellent
 Colors excellent
 Condition good -  light toning and soiling, not backed or trimmed
 Genre ukiyo-e
 Miscellaneous Portland Art Museum loan number L2012.113.4
 Format oban yoko-e
 H x W Paper 9 3/8 x 14 1/8 in. (23.8 x 35.9 cm)
 H x W Image
 8 7/8 x 13 1/8 in. (22.5 x 33.3 cm) area within printed black border
 Collections This Print University of Pittsburgh 20091209-kogyo-0449
 Reference Literature