Utagawa Kuniyoshi. Crab, Frog, and Turtle, from the series ‘E-kyōdai awase kagami’ (Brother Pictures for Comparison) / Fan print, c. 1840.

Artist: Utagawa Kuniyoshi [歌川 國芳] (Japanese, 1798–1861)

Signed: 一陽斎國芳画 (Ichiyōsai Kuniyoshi ga)

Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, c. 1815–1869) — no seal on this print

Date: c. 1840 (no seal)

Media: Fan print (uchiwa-e, 団扇絵), woodblock-printed in color, 227 × 299 mm

An unusual and whimsical scene featuring three acrobats whose bodies are transformed to resemble animals or objects. The print belongs to a series exploring paired visual puns or metamorphoses.

• The lower left figure resembles a turtle, with a dragon head, a blue-patterned shell-like robe, limbs spread in a crawling posture, and the tail of a folding fan tucked into its mouth. A red cord suspends him in the air.
• The top figure resembles a crab, with exaggerated limbs made of corn cobs still in their greens, and checked clothing forming its shell.
• The lower right figure squats with hands and feet on the floor, wearing a red-and-white scarf, and mimics a snail or frog.

The design is highly imaginative and surreal, blending Edo-period humor, acrobatics, and animal mimicry. A red cartouche framed by leaves and fabric at upper left contains the series title.

The series Brother Pictures for Comparison [絵鏡台合かゝ身] (e-kyôdai awase kagami) can be found at Kuniyoshi Project: This series consists of pairs of fan prints, with one print of each pair being a silhouette of the other. The series is not listed in Kuniyoshi by Basil William Robinson (Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1961). Another title of this image, provided by Sebastian Izzard, is 'Acrobats becoming animals'. The series is attributed to c. 1840.