• Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Artist signature: By the brush of the 79-year-old Toyokuni [七十九歳豊國画] (Nanajūkyū-sai Toyokuni ga). Publisher: Ebiya Rinnosuke [海老屋林之助] (Japanese, fl. c. 1832 – 1895); seal: ト/ 海老林 (to, Ebirin). Block carver: Matsushima Masakichi [松島政吉]; seal: carved by Masa [彫政] (Hori Masa). Combined date seal and kiwame censor seal: [子極] 1864 (Bunkyū 4/Genji 1). Media: Untrimmed fan print (uchiwa-e), 223 x 297 mm. Inscription in the cartouches: (R) Wakana-hime [若菜姫], Sawamura Tanosuke III [沢村田之助]; (L) Ashikaga Sanshichirō [足利三七郎], Sawamura Tosshō II [沢村訥升]. Play: Kinoene Soga Daikoku-bashira [甲子曽我大国柱], performed at the Morita theatre [森田座・守田座] (Morita-za) in 1864 (Bunkyū 4/Genji 1), 2nd month (see playbill at MFA-Boston Collection). Playwright: Muraoka Kōji II [村岡幸治]. Actors and Characters: Sawamura Tanosuke III [三代目沢村田之助] (Japanese, 1859 – 1878); other names: Shozan [曙山] (poetry name), Sawamura Yoshijirō I [初代沢村由次郎], here in the role of Princess Wakana [若菜姫] (Wakana-hime) (R). The story about Princess Wakana, Shiranui Monogatari, was written by Ryukatei Tanekazu [柳下亭種員] (Japanese, 1807 – 1858) and published as a 90-volume book of comics between 1849 and 1855. ...The tale revolves around the clash between the Kikuchi and Ōtomo clans. Princess Wakana’s father Ōtomo Sōrin [大友 宗麟] (1530 – 1587) was killed in a battle, and his spirit demanded revenge. To appease her late father's spirit, Princes Wakana acquired the power of the Earth Spider. She often appears in prints with a magic scroll, which helps her fight various enemies. Sawamura Tosshō II [二代目沢村訥升] (Japanese, 1854 – 1879); other names: Kōga [高賀] (poetry name), Sawamura Genpei II [二代目沢村源平], Sawamura Sōjūrō [澤村宗十郎], Suketakaya Takasuke IV [四代目助高屋高助], Sawamura Tosshi VI [六代目澤村訥子] (poetry name), here in the role of Ashikaga Sanshichirō [足利三七郎] (L) with a horse. According to Markus Sesko, the scene comes from the kabuki play Umakiri (馬斬り) by Tatsuoka Mansaku [辰岡万作] (17432 – 1809), which premiered in 1794. It was later assimilated into the Kabuki play Kozotte Mimasu Kuruwa no Datezome [襷廓三升伊達染], which was staged in the 1st lunar month of 1853 at the Nakamura-za. Umakiri is based on a Kyōgen play featured in Hideyoshi’s biography Taikōki [太閤記]. Its plot is that Ashikaga Sanchichirō Yoshitaka [足利三七郎義孝・義高], who is supposed to allude to Nobunaga’s son Oda Sanshichirō Nobutaka [織田三七郎信孝], attacks and kills a horse that is carrying 3,000 ryō (金三千両), money Mashiba Hisayoshi [真柴久吉] (an allusion to Hashiba Hideyoshi [羽柴秀吉]) had sent to be donated to a shrine on Mt. Kōya. The surrounding people try to catch him, but when they hear it is Yoshitaka who killed the horse, they fall to the ground and prostrate, and Yoshitaka leisurely leaves with the money. The plot is very simple, but Yoshitaka’s dashing appearance makes it very pleasing to watch. There are also prints that quote the main protagonist as Ashikaga Sanshichirō Harutaka [足利三七郎春高], and there is another title for the play, Sanzen-Ryō Kogane no Kurairi [三千両黄金蔵入] (Pocketing 3,000 ryō of gold). For reference, see also the BLOG. What these two characters are doing in one play remains a riddle. As Mr Graebner comments: "Most kabuki plays were only performed for one season (two months), and the books were lost. The playwrights have repeatedly used parts of plots from other plays, they have adopted characters, sometimes with the same or similar names. What can be found is the Kabuki Playbill (Tsuji banzuke) with cast and roles; the content is lost".

    MBA-Boston Accession number 11.28192

    Acknowledgements: Special thanks to Horst Graebner of the Kunisada Project and to Markus Sesko of The Metropolitan Museum, NY, for the analysis of the image and their invaluable contribution. For reference, see also:        
  • One volume in-4o, 26.5 x 21 x 4.4 cm, bound by Durvand (signed) in yellow ¾ morocco over marbled boards outlined in gilt, spine with raised bands, gilt lettering, vignettes after Félicien Rops in compartments, top margin gilt, marbled endpapers, publisher’s wrappers preserved; enriched with 57 original prints after Félicien Rops and an etched portrait of Félicien Rops by Robert Kastor. Collation: 3 blanks, π4 (orig. front wrapper ‘En souscription…./Etudes sur…’, La tentation…/Érastène Ramiro..., h.t./justification, t.p/blank), 1-274 (paginated 1-215 [216]) χ2 plus 58 leaves of bound-in original prints by various printers on different papers, some on India paper pasted on vergé, with tissue guards, and 1 leave of manuscript ‘Table de gravures dans le texte’; back wrapper with ‘Table des gravures ajoutées’ manuscript to recto, original spine, 2 blanks. Title-page (red and black): Études sur quelques Artistes originaux | — | FÉLICIEN ROPS | par | ÉRASTÈNE RAMIRO | {fleuron} | PARIS | (left): G. PELLET | 51, Rue Le Peletier, 51 | (right): H. FLOURY | 1, Boulevard des Capucines, 1 | 1905 || Limitation: 125 copies, of which 100 copies on Japon à la forme and 25 copies 0n papier de Chine. Photographs here represent the original prints only. Contributors: Eugène Rodrigues-Henriques [Eugène Rodrigues, Erastène Ramiro] (French, 1853 –1928) – author. Félicien Rops (Belgian, 1833 – 1898) – artist. Robert Kastor (French, 1872 – 1935) – artist. Imprimerie Charles Hérissey (Évreux) – printer Gustave Pellet (French, 1859 – 1919) – publisher. Henri Floury (French, 1862 –1961) – publisher. Lucien Durvand (French, 1852 – 1924) – bookbinder.
  • Description: Softcover, French flapped wrappers, lettered front, back (advert.) and spine, collated in-4to, 24.3 x 20.2 cm, printed on thick wove paper Vélin pur fil Lafuma-Navarre, print run limited to 335 copies from which this is copy № 219; outer margin untrimmed, some leaves uncut, glassine DJ. Limitation: 1 copy (A) on Japon Impérial + double suite of plates + suite of original drawings, 4 copies (B-E) on Japon Impérial + double suite of plates, 15 copies on on Japon Impérial + suite of plates on Vieux Japon teinté (F-T), 315 copies on Vélin pur fil Lafuma-Navarre, of which 15 (I-XV) not for sale. Copyright: Libraire Gallimard, 1924. Printed: March 10, 1924 – text by Coulouma (Argenteuil) under direction of H. Barthélemy, lithographs printed by Marchizet (Paris). Front wrapper (in letterpress two-colour border): Tableaux Contemporains – no 4 | . TABLEAU | de | L'AMOUR | VÉNAL | par | FRANCIS CARCO | Illustré | de douze lithographies en noir | par Luc-Albert Moreau | PARIS | ÉDITIONS DE LA NOUVELLE REVUE FRANÇAISE | 3, rue de Grenelle || Title-page: Same, without a frame, in black, L'AMOUR | VÉNAL in brown. Collation: 4to; 14 a4 2-164, total 68 leaves with wrappers included in collation plus 12 plates, incl. frontispiece, extraneous to collation. Pagination: [2 wrapper] [6] [i] ii-vii [viii blank] [9] 10-122 [2 colophon] [2 blank] [2 wrapper]; total 136 pages incl. wrappers, plus ils. Contributors: Francis Carco [François Carcopino-Tusoli] (French, 1886 – 1958) – author. Luc-Albert Moreau (French, 1882 – 1948) – artist. La Nouvelle Revue Française (nrf) (Paris)– publisher. Gaston Gallimard (French, 1881 – 1975) – publisher.
  • An uncut fan print showing a young woman checking her makeup in a mirror from the series The pride of Edo [江戸じまん] (Edo jiman). The head portrait in the red circle is of kabuki actor Danjūrō VII. Ichikawa Danjūrō VII [市川団十郎] (Japanese, 1791 – 1859); other names: Ichikawa Ebizō V, Ichikawa Hakuen II, Ichikawa Shinnosuke I. Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代 歌川 豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Publisher: Ibaya Kyūbei [伊場屋 久兵衛] (Japanese, fl. 1804 – 1851). Artists signature: Ōkō Kunisada ga [應好国貞画] (Drawn to satisfy the taste of Kunisada) Publisher’s seal:久 – Ibakyū [伊場久]. Censor's seal: Kiwame; date seal: Bunsei 10 (1827). Saze: Aiban uchiwa-e; 23.2 x 28.9 cm. Ref.: [LIB-2967.2022] Utagawa Kunisada (1786 – 1865): His world revisited / Catalogue № 17, Exhibition March 17-21, 2021. — NY: Sebastian Izzard, LLC., 2021; p. 102, Cat. 28–fig. a.
  • Softcover, in pictorial wrappers, 28 x 21.6 cm, 30 entries, with colour illustrations, some folding. Catalogue of the sales exhibition on November 1-5, 2019 in NY; pagination: [1-3] 4-72 [2] [2 blank], ils. Contributor: Sebastian Izzard
  • Description: Softcover, 23 x 14.5 cm, original flapped wrappers, spine and front cover lettered in blue «WANDA DE S…. FRANÇOISE | OU | LES PLAISIRS DU MARIAGE | AUX ALLÉES DES ROSES», leaves untrimmed. Title-page: WANDA DE S…. | FRANÇOISE | OU | LES PLAISIRS DU MARIAGE | {vignette} | AUX ALLÉES DES ROSES ||  Collation: [1]8 (1 blank in wrapper, 1 blank, h.t., t.p., f.t.p., 3 leaves of text), 2-148 15(uncut), 116 leaves total plus 10 hand-coloured photogravures by anonymous, extraneous to collation. Pagination: [1-10] 11-224 [8], ils.; 232 pages total. Limitation: edition under subscription, limited to 600 copies of which 100 copies (№ 1-100) on pur fil and 500 copies (№ 101-600) on Vélin, this is № 142. Edition: 1st edition thus, printed by Maurice Darantiere, illustrated with 10 full-page coloured photogravures after an anonymous artist, attributed by some to Feodor Rojankovsky [Rojan] and by some to Louis Berthomme Saint-André. According to J.-P. Dutel, the original watercolours in his collection signed Véronique. Catalogue raisonné: Dutel (1920-1970): 1605, p. 176; honesterotica.com.  
  • Artist: Utagawa Fusatane [歌川 房種] (Japanese, fl. 1854 – 1889), other names: Ippyosai; Isshosai; Murai Seima; Utagawa Seimas; Osai; Signed: Ōsai Fusatane Hitsu [桜斎房種筆] in a cartouche, with a round stamp. Block carver: Watanabe Yatarō (Japanese, 1850 – 1913); seal [彫弥太] – Hori Yata (Friese 2009b: 117). Publisher [板元] (Hammoto): Satō Ise [佐藤いせ], address: Horiechō, Nichōme, ichi-banchi [堀江町二丁目一番地] Publication date [御届] (otodoke): Meiji 10th year, 3rd month, 22nd day (1877). Artist [画工] (Gakō): Murai Seima [村井 静馬], address: Honjo-Sotodechō, 18 [本所外手丁十八番地]. Uncut fan print (uchiwa-e), 236 x 297 mm, depicting two harlots or courtesans playing [娼妓あそび] (shōgi asobi) go game in the famous Kinpeiro [金瓶楼内] brothel in New Yoshiwara in Tokyo. In the courtesan's name, the second character seems to be 紫 (Murasaki); the first character is unclear, so we do not know her name yet.
  • Title-page: IDYLLES | DE BION | ET | DE MOSCHUS, | TRADUITES EN FRANÇAIS | Par J. B. Gail, Professeur de littéra- | ture grecque au collège de France. | Ouvrage orné de Figures dessinées par le Barbier. | DE L’IMPRIMERIE DE DIDOT JEUNE. | A PARIS, | Chez Gail, au Collège de France, place | Cambrai. | L’AN TROISIEME. || Small volume in-12mo, 14.7 x 10 cm, bound in tree calf with gilt ornamental border, flat spine with gilt lozenges in compartments, lacking upper label and half of the lower label, gilt dentelle inside, marbled endpapers, all edges gilt. Collation: 1st and last leaves blank, [1]-96, total 54 leaves and 9 engraved plates, incl. frontispiece. Pagination: [1-5] 6-106 [2] (notice), total 108 pages, ils. Illustrations: (1) Frontispiece bust portrait of Jean-Baptiste Gail in two states, one proof before letters signed Le Barbier del., — C. S. Gaucher inc. a. ƒ., the other in finished state lettered « J. B. Gail | Professeur de littérature grecque | au collège de France » signed Le Barbier del. — C. S. Gaucher incid. (2) Le tombeau d’Adonis in two states, the first unsigned, the second signed by Le Barbier and Gaucher in Greek Λε Βαρβιερ εγραφε — Γαυχερ εχαλχενε, with tissue guard. (3) Enlèvement d’Europe in two states, the first signed Baquoy fecit., the second Le Barbier inv. — Delignon Sculp. (4) Amour du fleuve Alphée pour la fontaine Aréthuse in two states, the first unsigned, the second signed Le Barbier inv. — Dambrun. (5) Daphnis et Naïs only in final state signed by Le Barbier and Gaucher in Greek Λε Βαρβιερ εγρφε — Γαυχερ εχαλχενε. (sic.) Catalogue raisonné: Cohen-DeRicci 151-2, attributes to 1895, in-18, Daphnis et Naïs without the proof state;  Lewine 64, "very scarce, particularly that of the portrait, a fancy price". Contributors: Bion [Βίων] (fl. late 2nd century BCE, Phlossa near Smyrna) – author. Moschus [Μόσχος] (fl. mid 2nd century BCE, Syracuse) – author. Jean-Baptiste Gail (French, 1755 – 1829) – translator. Jean-Jacques-François Le Barbier (French, 1738 – 1826) – artist. Charles-Étienne Gaucher (French, 1740 – 1804) – engraver. Jean-Louis Delignon (French, 1755 – 1820) – engraver. Jean Dambrun (1741 – 1808/14) – engraver. Pierre François Didot, Le Jeune (French, 1732 – 1795) – publisher.
  • 26 issues of American political humourous magazine published by Joseph Keppler (Austrian-American, 1838 – 1894) and Adolph Schwarzmann (German-American, 1838 – 1904) with caricatures by Frederick Burr Opper (American, 1857 – 1937); 35 x 27 cm, bound in faux shagreen with half green buckram backing, gilt vignette and lettering to front board: ‘What fools these Mortals be!” | MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM | PUCK ||
  • Quarter calf over marbled boards, 16 x 9 cm, spine with raised bands, gilt in compartments, gilt-lettered label, all margins red, two title-pages (one for each vol.), illustrated with engraved frontispiece by Antonio Baratti after Antonio Balestra; engraved portrait of John Milton by Antonio Baratti, 12 plates, one for each book, after “Piazzetta, Zucchi, Balestra, Tiepolo, and other Venetian artists”, unsigned; plate II signed ‘Antonio Barati scul.’ Title page: IL PARADISO | PERDUTO | POEMA INGLESE | DI GIOVANNI MILTON | TRADOTTO DAL SIG. | PAOLO ROLLI | Con le Annotazioni | DI G. ADDISON | E alcune Osservazioni critiche. | TOMO PRIMO (SECUNDO). | {publisher’s device} | IN PARIGI , MDCCLVIII. | — | A spese di Bartolommeo Occhi. | LIBRAJO VENETO. || Collation: *-**12 ***8 (dedication, vita), A-R12 (vol. 1) A-K12 L9 (vol.2); total 365 leaves plus 14 engraved plates, incl. frontispiece and portrait. Pagination: [i, ii] iii-lxiv 1-407 [408 blank], [2] 3-258; total 730 pages. Catalogue raisonné: Wickenheiser Collection 688 [LIB-2795.2021]. Though it states 228 pp., which does not seem right. “Scarce. Not in Coleridge”. Contributors: Milton, John (British, 1608 – 1674) – author. Joseph Addison (British, 1672 – 1719) – author / criticism Paolo Antonio Rolli (Italian, 1687 – 1765) – author / transaltion Bartolomeo Occhi (Italian, 1730 – 1781) – publisher. Antonio Baratti (Italian, 1724 – 1787) – engraver Antonio Balestra (Italian, 1666 – 1740) – artist. Giovanni Battista Piazzetta (Italian,1682/83 – 1754) – artist. Antonio Zucchi (Italian, 1726 – 1795) – artist. Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (Italian, 1696 – 1770) – artist.