Artist: Utagawa Kunisada (歌川 国貞, Japanese, 1786–1865)
Signed: Ōju Kōchōrō Toyokuni ga (應需 香蝶樓 豊國画, Drawn by request by Kōchōrō Toyokuni)
Publisher: Yamadaya Shōjirō [山田屋 庄次郎] (Japanese, c. 1851–1866)
Block carver:  Yokokawa Takejirō [横川竹二郎] (Japanese, fl. 1845–1863); seal: Hori Take (彫竹).
Censor Seals: Hama (濱, Hama Yahei) and Magome (馬込, Magome Kageyu), in use together 1849–1852
Other Seals: Shitauri (下売) – indicating sale from counter stock, not wall display
Media: Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper, horizontal ōban triptych; three sheets joined, 36.7 x 77 cm (14.5 x 30.25 in)

Actors Depicted:

• Center Sheet:

  • Iwai Kumesaburō III (岩井 粂三郎, 1829–1882), also known as Iwai Hanshirō VIII (八代目岩井半四郎), Iwai Shijaku II, and Iwai Hisajirō II.

  • Ichimura Uzaemon XII (市村 羽左衛門, 1812–1851), also known as Ichimura Takenojô V, Ichimura Kamenosuke, and Ichimura Toyomatsu.

  • Ichikawa Danjūrō VIII (市川 団十郎, 1823–1854), also known as Ichikawa Ebizō VI, Ichikawa Shinnosuke II.

• Right Sheet:

  • Ōtani Tokuji I (大谷 徳次, 1756–1807) (likely a homage), also known as Ôtani Bajû I.

Title: Kabuki Actors as a Daimyō Procession – Sankin Kōtai (歌舞伎役者の大名行列 – 参勤交代, Kabuki yakusha no daimyo gyōretsu – sankin kōtai)

Set under blooming cherry blossoms at dawn, this triptych by Kunisada presents a grand and stylized depiction of a daimyō gyōretsu (daimyō procession), a ceremonial parade mandated under the Tokugawa shogunate’s sankin kōtai (alternate attendance) system. The entire retinue advances from right to left, following traditional East Asian textual direction, led by barefoot attendants and culminating in a high-ranking figure on horseback under a parasol—the focal point of the composition.

Each element of the parade—standard-bearers with fur-tipped banners, porters with chests, guards with polearms in black sleeves—is rendered with formal precision, mirroring actual Edo-period court processions. The entourage appears disciplined and theatrical, with exaggerated movement and finely detailed costumes enhancing the dramatic effect.

Beneath the surface pageantry lies social satire. The central riders and guards are, in fact, famous kabuki actors, cast here in the roles of powerful feudal lords and their retainers—an ironic and humorous inversion of class status. Kunisada cleverly plays with this juxtaposition, transforming a rigid ritual of samurai power into a playful, performative tableau. This genre-blending mitate (parodic allusion) aligns with a broader ukiyo-e tradition that emerged during the Tenpō Reforms (1841–1843), when actor portraits were officially banned. In response, artists disguised popular actors in alternate guises—merchants, warriors, or, as here, aristocrats—to bypass censorship while still appealing to kabuki fans.

Such visual riddles and coded references delighted the contemporary audience and underscored ukiyo-e’s function as mass entertainment and subtle commentary. Casting actors in a distinctly male domain further echoes the all-male kabuki stage, adding a layer of reflexive theatricality.

References:

• Identifications based on the Tsubouchi Memorial Theatre Museum Ukiyo-e Database, Waseda University (sheets 006-0207, 006-0208, 006-0209)

• For background on sankin kōtai and daimyō processions, see Constantine Nomikos Vaporis, Tour of Duty: Samurai, Military Service in Edo, and the Culture of Early Modern Japan, esp. Chapter 3, “The Daimyō Procession”