Chinsai Rosetsu. Illustration of Success by Torpedo Boats in the Naval Battle at Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War / Ōban triptych, 1904.

Artist: Chinsai Rosetsu [珍斎 呂雪] (Japanese, active early 20th century)
Signed: 珍斎呂雪
Title: Illustration of Success by Torpedo Boats in the Naval Battle at Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War (日露旅順口ニ於ケル海戦水雷艇成功之図 — Nichiro Ryojunkō ni okeru kaisen suiraitei seikō no zu)
Date: Meiji 37 (1904), 3rd month
Media: Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper, horizontal ōban triptych; three sheets joined, 37 x 73.5 cm (14.5 x 29 inches)

Block carver: Ishikawa Tokubei [石川 徳兵衛] (Japanese, active late 19th – early 20th century), seal: 彫工德 (Hori Kō Toku); Frieze 302-5
Printer: Shiojima Insatsu (塩島印刷)
Publisher: Katada Chōjirō [片田長次郎] (Japanese, publisher, fl. c. 1887–1904); Marks 217
Colophon (left sheet): Printed: March 7, 1904 (Meiji 37); Published: March 13, 1904 (Meiji 37); Address: Tokyo City, Asakusa Ward, Tamachi 1-chome, No. 3

On the night of February 8–9, 1904, the Japanese navy launched a surprise attack on the Russian fleet anchored off Port Arthur (Lüshunkou), disabling several of the most powerful ships in Russia’s Pacific Squadron.

This triptych by Chinsai Rosetsu captures the dramatic opening engagement of the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905), focusing on the torpedo boat assault that stunned the Russian navy and the Tsar's officials in St. Petersburg. Two Japanese torpedo craft surge through storm-tossed seas under heavy fire, while triumphant Japanese sailors charge across the deck of the nearest vessel. A major Russian warship is struck amidships, with smoke and flame erupting from its hull. Explosions flare, waves crash, and plumes of black smoke engulf the sky in a tightly compressed, high-intensity composition typical of Meiji-period war prints (senso-e).

Though Rosetsu remains a lesser-known figure, this design displays striking graphic clarity, dynamic pacing, and compositional control. It exemplifies the visual strategies employed in wartime propaganda to portray moments of national triumph.

Good quality, bright colours, wide margins.