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Title: Eleventh lunar month (Chuto no zu); Series: Fashionable Twelve Months (Imayo juni-kagetsu). Another version of translation: Modern Beauties of Twelve Months. Artist: Utagawa Toyokuni I [歌川豊国] (1769–1825). Pubisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, 1815 – 1869), seal: Dansendō [伊場仙]. Signed: Toyokuni ga and sealed with toshidama. Date-kiwame seal: Ushi (ox), Bunsei 5 (1822). Size: double-sheet uncut fan print ( aiban uchiwa-e), 219 x 295 mm. -
The Bay of Kuroto in Kazusa province [Kazusa Kuroto no ura] – an uncut fan print showing "Three women, wearing stylish cotton summer robes are shown in a skiff, admiring the view of Mount Fuji while looking back at the other passengers being helped into small boats". From the series: Views of famous places in the provinces [Shokoku meisho zue]. Ref: Sebastian Izzard. Important Japanese Prints 1830–1860 March 14–20, 2020 exhibition [LIB-2398.2020], №. 53. Not in Faulkner's Hiroshige Fan Prints, however, there are three other prints from the series, under № 95, 96 and 97 on p. 95. Artist: Utagawa Hiroshige [歌川 広重] a.k.a. Andō Hiroshige [安藤 広重] (Japanese, 1797 – 1858). Publisher: Iseya Sōemon [伊勢屋惣右衛門] (Japanese, c. 1776 – 1862). Date seal: 2/1855 Signed: Hiroshige ga. Censor's seal: aratame (certified) and date. Publisher's seal: Iseya Sōemon. Size: Aiban yoko-e uchiwa-e; 22.9 x 29.8 cm -
Artist: Utagawa Sadahide [歌川貞秀] (Japanese, 1807 – 1879) Publisher: Kojimaya Jūbei [小島屋重兵衛] (Japanese, c. 1797 – 1869) No date seal, no censor seal (privately printed?) Media: Fan print (uchiwa-e, 団扇絵), 235 x 297 mm. Kalimeris incisa, or Japanese Aster, is a daisy-like flower that belongs to the family of Asteraceae; it blossoms all summer and attracts butterflies. Peony [牡丹] (botan) – per Merrily Baird it is "the king of flowers", associated with erotic love, and especially with the sexual activities of women. -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada, a.k.a. Toyokuni III (Japanese, 1786 – 1865) [歌川 国貞]. Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, fl. C. 1845 – 1847). Date aratame seal: Bunsei 12 (1829). Signed: Gototei Kunisada ga [五渡亭国貞画]. Media: Fan print (uchiwa-e), 272 x 235 mm. Actor: Iwai Hanshirō VI (Japanese, 1799 – 1836); other names: Iwai Hanshirō VI, Iwai Kumesaburō II, Iwai Hisajirō I, Baiga [梅我] (poetry name), Shūka (poetry name). The background is Arare-ko-mon [霰小紋] hail pattern. Kabuki actor Iwai Kumesaburō II in the role of An no Heibei [安の平兵衛] in the drama Otokodate Itsutsu Karigane [男作五雁金] (Play, 7 acts. Produced 1742/09). From Lyon collection: The real An no Heibei (ca. 1672-1702): "In a gang with Kaitate no Kichiemon, Hote no Ichiemon, Mippiki Jihei and others as of the Seventh Month of 1697. Attacked people with a sword on the sixth day, Seventh Month, 1699, which he then secreted with Kichiemon. On the evening of the sixth day, Sixth Month, 1701, stabbed Kibei, an employee of Kawachiya Gohei of the residential quarter Kyuhoji, in the side with a dagger. A subsequent police investigation resulted in Heibei's arrest the following day. Beheaded at the execution grounds located at Sennichi Mae on the twenty-sixth day of the Eighth Month, 1702." Note: According to Horst Graebner, the actor's name below the series title in the cartouche is Baiga (梅我), the poetry name of Iwai Kumesaburō II. On the other prints in this series, the actors are also named on the other prints with their poetry names. In the red cartouche at the top left is the series title "Edo no hana – itsutsu Karigane" (江戸の花 五雁金), to be translated as "Flowers of Edo - the five Karigane blood-brothers" (or "the five Karigane gang members"). "Since there was no performance with the Karigane brothers from 1829, these must be mitate prints", states Mr Graebner. -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Block cutter: Yokokawa Takejirō [横川竹二郎] (Japanese, fl. 1845 – 1863), seal Hori Take [彫竹]. Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, fl. C. 1845 – 1847). Title: Book of an incoming ship [入船帳] (Irifune-chō). Series: Comparison of Eight Books of Proficiency and Eloquence [口も手も美立八帳] (Kuchimo temo mitate hatchō). Date seal and aratame censor seal: 1856 (Ansei 3). Signed: Toyokuni ga in toshidama cartouche. Media: Untrimmed fan print (uchiwa-e), 231 x 300 mm. Provenance: The Collection of Paul F. Walter, Christie's, New York, 2017, lot 341; sold together with 5 other fan prints for $25,000. Before: Israel Goldman, Japanese Prints, Catalogue 11, 2005, no. 37. Ref: [LIB-1693.2018] The Collection of Paul Walter. — NY: Christie's, 2017, p. 363. Ref: Israel Goldman, Catalogue 2018, № 51: "Utagawa Kunisada (1786-1865) A Beauty Seated in a Boat. From the series Mitate hatcho (A Parody of Eight Books). 1856. Fan print. 23.3 x 30 cm. Provenance: Israel Goldman, Japanese Prints, Catalogue 11, 2005, no. 37, The Collection of Paul F. Walter, Christie's, New York, 2017, lot 341. Fine impression, colour and condition. The title contains the saying: “Kuchi mo hatcho te mo hatcho (As quick with one’s hand as one’s tongue)." Special thanks to Horst Graebner for the detailed description. -
Artist: Utagawa Hiroshige II (二代目 歌川広重] (Japanese, 1826 – 1869). Signed: Hiroshige ga. Publisher: Enshūya Matabei [遠州屋又兵衛] (Japanese, fl. c. 1768 – 1881); (Enmata [遠又]), seal 22-009 (Marks). Block carver: Matsushima Masakichi (Japanese, fl. c. 1847-65); seal: [松嶋彫政] – Hori Masa (Frieze, 2009: 142). Combined date seal and kiwame censor seal: Bunkyū 2 (1862). Media: Fan print (uchiwa-e, 団扇絵), 230 x 298 mm Series: Three Famous Views in Ise [伊勢名所三景] (Ise meisho sankei). -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Toyokuni ga [豊国 画] in a red toshidama cartouche. Actor: Ichikawa Danjūrō VII 市川団十郎 (Japanese, 1791 – 1859); other names: Ichikawa Ebizō V, Ichikawa Hakuen II, Ichikawa Shinnosuke I. Character: Tanbaya Onizo [丹波屋鬼蔵] Play: Koi Bikyaku Yamato Orai [恋飛脚大和往来] Performance: Kawarasaki Theatre [河原崎座] in the 2nd month of 1851. Double nanushi censor seals: Fuku & Muramatsu, from 3rd month of Kaei 2 to 11th month of Kaei 4 (1849-51). Another fan print from the pair SVJP-0212-2.2016: Sawamura Chōjūrō V as Kameya Chubei.
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Sawamura Gennosuke II [沢村源之助] (Suketakaya Takasuke III, Sawamura Chōjūrō V, Sawamura Sōjūrō V, Sawamura Tosshō I, Sawamura Genpei I, Japanese, 1802/7 – 1853) as Ushiwakamaru [牛若丸], a.k.a. Minamoto no Yoshitsune [源 義経]. Ichikawa Danjūrō VII [市川団十郎] (Ichikawa Ebizō V, Ichikawa Hakuen II, Ichikawa Shinnosuke I, Japanese, 1791 – 1859) as Benkei, a.k.a. Saitō Musashibō Benkei [西塔武蔵坊弁慶] (Japanese, 1155 – 1189) Performance: Grand finale dance play [大切所作事] (ōgiri shosagoto) at Soga Festival - A Composite Piece of Musashi「曽我祭武蔵摂物 ごさいれいむさしのひきもの)」 (Gosairei Musashi no hikimono), performed at Kawarazakiza (河原崎座) in 05/1831 (See kabuki plays from 1831). Soga Festival (Soga Matsuri) is an annual theatre event in Edo (Tokyo). Scene: The Fight on Gojo Bridge or Benkei on the Bridge [橋弁慶] (Hashi Benkei). The story relates how Benkei, first a monk, then a mountain ascetic, and then a rogue warrior, a man of Herculean strength, was subdued by the young Onzoshi Ushiwaka Maru (Yoshitsune) on Gojo Bridge. Benkei wandered around Kyoto with the intention of relieving 1000 samurai of their swords. One night, with one more sword to go, he saw Yoshitsune playing the flute and wearing a golden sword at the Gojotenjin Shrine. They agreed to fight on Gojo Bridge in southern Kyoto. However, Yoshitsune was too agile for Benkei and had been educated in the secrets of fighting by the tengu. Following Yoshitsune’s victory, Benkei became Yoshitsune’s retainer. Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞], a.k.a. Toyokuni III (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburo [伊場屋仙三郎]. Signed: Gototei Kunisada ga [五渡亭国貞画]. Date-aratame seal: Tenpō 2 (1831). Size: Fan print (uchiwa-e). Ref.: (1) Tokyo Metropolitan Library, 請求記号 M339-6/東M339-006. (2) Ritsumeikan University, Art Research Center, Portal Database M339-006(02).
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Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Ichiyōsai Toyokuni hitsu [一陽斎豊国筆]. Inscriptions: [松竹梅] Shochikubai = pine (matsu, 松), bamboo (take, 竹), and plum (ume, 梅) – an auspicious grouping known as “The Three Friends of Winter“; [三福追] (Sanpuku tsui) – the three delights, or pleasures. Date seal and aratame censor seal: Ansei 2, 1st month (1855). Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, c. 1815 – 1869). Block carver: Yokokawa Takejirō [横川竹二郎] (Japanese, fl. 1845 – 1863); seal: Hori Take [彫竹]. Kabuki actor Onoe Kikugorō V [五代目尾上菊五郎] (Onoe Baikō V, Ichimura Kakitsu IV, Ichimura Uzaemon XIII, Ichimura Kurōemon, Japanese, 1844 – 1903) giving candies to the memorial portrait of his predecessor, Ichimura Takenojō V [市村竹之丞] (Ichimura Uzaemon XII, Ichimura Kamenosuke, Ichimura Toyomatsu, Japanese, 1812 – 1851); the latter is dressed in a green robe adorned with a crest (mon) of a kōrin-style crane in a tortoiseshell (octagon), the hanging scroll border decorated with bamboo under snow; the collar of Onoe's kimono decorated with plum blossoms, another plum blossom arrangement decorates the screen behind him. Actors identified by Horst Graebner. Two fan prints from this series in Varshavsky Collection:
SVJP-0335.2021
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Artist: Utagawa Toyokuni I [歌川豊国] (1769–1825). Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋 仙三郎] (fl. 1815 – 1869). Signed: Toyokuni ga [豊国 画]. Publisher's seal: Ibaya Sensaburō (Marks 08-067 | 127b). Date-aratame seal: Bunsei 3 (1820). Size: Uncut fan print (uchiwa-e), 224 x 254 mm. Ichikawa Ebijūrō I as Nuregami Chōgorō [濡髪の長五郎], Nakamura Daikichi as Hanaregoma Oseki [放駒のお関], and Ichikawa Danjūrō VII as Hanaregoma Chōkichi [放駒長吉] in a kabuki play Futatsu Chôchô Kuruwa Nikki [双蝶々曲輪日記] (A Diary of Two Butterflies in the Pleasure Quarters (see: LIB-0879.2015 | Brandon, James R., Leiter, Samuel L. Kabuki Plays on Stage: Brilliance and Bravado, 1697-1766 (Volume 1). — Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press, 2002.) The play was performed at Kawarasakiza (Edo) in May of 1820. Actors: Ichikawa Ebijūrō I [市川鰕十郎] (Japanese, 1777 – 1827); other names: Ichikawa Ichizō I [市川市蔵], Ichinokawa Ichizō [市ノ川市蔵]. Nakamura Daikichi I [初代中村大吉](Japanese, 1773 – 1823); other names: Fujikawa Daikichi [藤川大吉]; poetry name Hajō [巴丈]; pen name Naruo Yatarō [藤川大吉]. Ichikawa Danjūrō VII 市川団十郎 (Japanese, 1791 – 1859); other names: Ichikawa Ebizō V, Ichikawa Hakuen II, Ichikawa Shinnosuke I. -
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. -
Artist: Utagawa Hiroshige II (二代目 歌川広重] (Japanese, 1826 – 1869). Signed: Hiroshige ga. Publisher: Iseya Sōemon [伊勢屋惣右衛門] (Japanese, c. 1776 – 1862); seal: Hanmoto, Ue [板元 上] (Marks 19-047 | 156d). Combined date seal and kiwame censor seal: Bunkyū 2 (1862) Media: Fan print (uchiwa-e, 団扇絵), 230 x 296 mm. -
Artist: Utagawa Sadahide [歌川 貞秀], a.k.a. Gountei Sadahide [五雲亭 貞秀] (Japanese, 1807 – c. 1878-9). Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, c. 1815 – 1869). Date-kiwame seal: 1831 (Tenpō 2). Size: Uchiwa-e, 298 x 232 mm. Pair of uncut fan prints (1) with the god of wind and (2) with the god of thunder meant to be pasted on two sides of a fan.
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Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Kunisada ga [国貞画] in a red double-gourd cartouche. Publisher: Iseya Sōemon [伊勢屋惣右衛門] (Japanese, c. 1776 – 1862). Date seal and kiwame censor seal: 1840 (Tenpō 11). Media: Untrimmed fan print (uchiwa-e), 227 x 293 mm. Title: Benzaiten Shrine at Honjō Block One [ひとつ目乃弁天] (Hitotsume no Benten). Provenance: The Collection of Paul F. Walter, Christie's, New York, 2017, lot 341; sold together with 5 other fan prints for $25,000. Before: Christie's, New York, 1997, lot 93 ($5,520). Ref: [LIB-1693.2018] The Collection of Paul Walter. — NY: Christie's, 2017, p. 363. Ref: Israel Goldman, Catalogue 2018, № 31: "Utagawa Kunisada (1786-1865) A Woman Reading a Letter by the Light of a Lantern. Hitotsume no Benten (One-eyed Benten). 1840. Fan print. Provenance: Japanese Prints, Paintings and Screens, Christie's, New York, 1997, lot 93 ($5,520), The Collection of Paul F. Walter, Christie's, New York, 2017, lot 341. Fine impression and colour. Expertly restored wormholes in the lower margin." Markus Sesko comment regarding the series title: "Some time between in the latter half of the 17th century, blind acupuncturist Sugiyama Waichi (1614–1694) cured a neurotic disease afflicting Shōgun Tokugawa Tsunayoshi. Tsunayoshi asked Sugiyama what he would like as a reward, he answered that all that he would really desire was just one functioning eye. Now here we arrive at a wordplay. “One eye,” as you know, is Hitotsu-me in Japanese. As Tsunayoshi obviously could not reward Sugiyama with an eye, he gave him the entire first block of the Honjō neighbourhood in Edo, measuring about 1.2 ha. So, Honjō Block One is Honjō Hitotsu-me in Japanese as me not only means “eye,” but also “number.” Sugiyama moved there, but as he was praying to Benzaiten enshrined in the Enoshima-jinja southwest of Kamakura, Tsunayoshi gave Sugiyama permission to erect a small shrine on his new premises that was then dedicated to Benzaiten as well. To spare the old blind man the long trip so to speak. This shrine was named Honjō Hitotsu-me Benzaiten Shrine, short Hitotsu-me Benten, meaning the “Benzaiten Shrine at Honjō Block One.” That is, the label in the print refers to this context, i.e., location, not to a one-eyed Benzaiten. Sugiyama also had some rock formations of the “original” Benzaiten Shrine at Enoshima copied at his place, which was named Iwaya (い王や) (see picture attached). The lantern the woman is holding in the print is inscribed “Imuya” (い無や). Usually, the character mu (無) is not read wa in replacing a syllable, so maybe Imuya can be attributed to artistic freedom on part of Utagawa Kunisada, referring to the local Iwaya garden?" -
Title: Modori Kago [戻駕] (Returning palanquin). The dance-drama Modori Kago Iro ni Aikata [戻駕色相肩] premiered in the 11th lunar month of 1788 at the Nakamuraza [中村座], within Sakurada Jisuke I's kaomise [顔見世] (faceshowing) program Tôzumô Hana no Edogata [唐相撲花江戸方]", which celebrated the homecoming to Edo, after two years' absence, of Nakamura Nakazō I, and was intended to show off his particular talents in the role of Jirosaku (in reality Ishikawa Goemon [石川 五右衛門]) [kabuki21]. The symbol on a green book cover is the informal crest of tokiwazu-bushi [常磐津節] shaped like a water chestnut (Eleocharis dulcis) lozenge. Artist signature 国盛画 (Kunimori ga) with red toshidama. According to Samuel L. Leiter’s Kabuki Encyclopedia (1979), p. 243: The palanquin bearers Nanpa no Jirosaku and Azuma no Yōshirō, who are bearing a palanquin with a courtesan's young handmaiden in it, stop to rest at Kyoto's Murasakino, and each dances his regional dance. Then they call the girl, who does a dance showing the visitors to the famous pleasure quarters, Yoshiwara and Shimabara. The two men recognize each other as Ishikawa Goemon and Masashiba Hisayoshi, sworn enemies, and engage in a fight. This number is the only remaining section of an annual "faceshowing” (kaomize) work with a plot based on the medieval chronicle called the Toikōki. The full-length piece was called Kara Sumō Hanaeda no Kata. It is one of the most famous tokiwazu pieces and preserves the old-style Kabuki flavour. Nakamura Nakazō I played Jirosaku and Matsumoto Kōshirō IV was Yoshiro in the first production. The handmaiden was Matsumoto Komesaburō (probably Matsumoto Komasaburō I, an unknown actor [SV]). According to Egenolf Gallery: This work was first performed in 1788 at the Edo Nakamura-za as the season’s first performance and featured Nakamura Nakazō, who returned to Edo after three years in Osaka. It was a dance with tokiwazu chanting and was designed for him to play the lead role. In the piece, two palanquin carriers, one from Osaka, another from Edo, and a passenger – a kamuro, (a young geisha-in-training) exchange stories about the pleasure quarters of Shimabara and Yoshiwara. The text of the chanting book is open next to her, carrying the title “Collection of Practicing” [稽古尽くし], on which the green bundle cover carries the crest of Tokiwazu School, matsu-kawa-bishi, diamond variety of pine bark and the artist’s signature. Tokiwazu is a type of jōruri, narrative music, and accompanies dancing on the kabuki stage. Ref.: Christie's 27 Mar 2006. Publisher: Maruya Jinpachi, seal Marujin (Marks: 12-029 | 294e) Single nanushi censor seal: Mura (Murata Sahei, 1842-46). Provenance: Circular seal of the collector Huguette Bérès to verso. Contributors: Utagawa Kunimori [歌川国盛] (Japanese, fl. c. 1818 – 1943) – artist. Maruya Jinpachi [丸屋甚八] (Japanese, fl. 1770 – 1842) – publisher. Other mentioned: Nakamura Nakazō I [中村仲蔵] (Japanese, 1736 – 1790); other names: Nakayama Kojūrō VI, Nakamura Ichijūrō, Nakayama Manzō – actor. Matsumoto Kōshirō IV [松本幸四郎] (Japanese, 1737 – 1802); other names: Omegawa Kyōjūrō; Ichikawa Komazō II, Ichikawa Somegorô I, Ichikawa Takejūrō ; Segawa Kinji; Segawa Kingo – actor. Sakurada Jisuke I [桜田治助] (Japanese, 1734 – 1806) – dramatist. -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Toyokuni ga [豊国 画] in a red toshidama cartouche. Actor: Sawamura Gennosuke II [沢村源之助] (Japanese, 1802/7 – 1853); other names: Suketakaya Takasuke III, Sawamura Chōjūrō V [沢村長十郎], Sawamura Tosshō I, Sawamura Genpei I. Character: Kameya Chubei [亀屋忠兵衛] Play: Koi Bikyaku Yamato Orai [恋飛脚大和往来] Performance: Kawarasaki Theatre [河原崎座] in the 2nd month of 1851. Double nanushi censor seals: Fuku & Muramatsu, from 3rd month of Kaei 2 to 11th month of Kaei 4 (1849-51). Another fan print from the pair SVJP-0212-1.2016: Ichikawa Ebizō V as Tanbaya Onizo / Fan print, 1851.
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Artist: Utagawa Sadahide [歌川貞秀] (Japanese, 1807 – 1879). Publisher: Kojimaya Jūbei [小島屋重兵衛] (Japanese, c. 1797 – 1869); seal: Marks #264, p. 210) Signed: Gyokuransai Sadahide ga [玉蘭斎貞秀 画]. Date seal: 1830 (Bunsei 13 / Tenpō 1). Size: Uncut fan print (uchiwa-e); 229 x 292 mm -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Ichiyōsai Toyokuni hitsu [一陽斎豊国筆]. Inscriptions: [松竹梅] Shochikubai = pine (matsu, 松), bamboo (take, 竹), and plum (ume, 梅) – an auspicious grouping known as "The Three Friends of Winter"; [三福追] (Sanpuku tsui) – the three delights, or pleasures. Date seal and aratame censor seal: Ansei 2, 1st month (1855). Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, c. 1815 – 1869). Block carver: Yokokawa Takejirō [横川竹二郎] (Japanese, fl. 1845 – 1863); seal: Hori Take [彫竹]. Kabuki actor Nakamura Shikan IV [中村芝翫] (Nakamura Fukusuke I [中村福助], Nakamura Masanosuke I, Nakamura Komasaburō, Nakamura Tamatarō I, Japanese, 1831 – 1899) arranging a branch of blossoming plum to the memorial portrait of his predecessor Nakamura Utaemon IV [中村歌右衛門] (Nakamura Shikan II, Nakamura Tsurusuke I, Nakamura Tōtarō, Japanese, 1796 – 1852); the latter is dressed in a black robe adorned with a mokkō-crest (mon) of white plum blossom, the hanging scroll border decorated with arabesque and plum blossoms. Actors identified by Horst Graebner. Two fan prints from this series in Varshavsky Collection:
SVJP-0336.2021
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Artist: Utagawa Kuniyoshi [歌川 國芳] (Japanese, 1798 – 1861).Title: Suzume fukube [美人団扇絵] (Sparrow and gourds).
Series: Kacho awase [花鳥合] (Collection of flowers and birds).
Publisher: Aritaya Seiemon [有田屋 清右衛門] (Japanese, fl. c. 1830 – 1862); Seal: Marks 17-011 | 014d.Signed: Ichiyosai Kuniyoshi ga in a red cartouche and sealed with paulownia crest (kiri mon).
Size: Uchiwa-e (untrimmed fan print) 296 x 230 mm.
Double nanushi censor seals: Kinugasa & Watanabe, Kaei 2-3 (1849–50).
Ref.: Kuniyoshi Project. -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Artists signature: Kunisada ga [国貞画] in a red double-gourd cartouche. Character: Kabuki actor Ichikawa Danjūrō VII [七代目 市川 團十郎]; other names: Ichikawa Ebizō V, Ichikawa Shinnosuke I (Japanese, 1791 – 1859). Series: Six choice modern flowers [當世六花撰] (Tosei rok’kasen). No publisher's seal, no date or censor's seal is present. Size: Fan print (aiban uchiwa-e); 232 x 289 mm. Provenance: Paul F. Walter. Izzard: "... six prints make up this set of fan prints, which compares contemporary artists with classic poets, in this case, Ichikawa Danjūrō VII with Ōtomo no Kuronushi [大友 黒主] (Japanese, dates unknown)". Rok'kasen [六歌仙] – six poetry immortals. According to Izzard, identification of the portrayed person is made possible by mimasu-mon [三升] on the robe, scrolling peony on the back of the mirror, and cloth decorated with the characters Yauan, one of the actor's poetry names, and other signs and symbols, including the inscription of the acter's guild name Naritaya. The absence of the publisher’s emblem and censorship seals may indicate that this was a privately issued print, not for public use. Ref: (1) [LIB-2967.2022] Utagawa Kunisada (1786 – 1865): His world revisited / Catalogue № 17, Exhibition March 17-21, 2021. — NY: Sebastian Izzard, LLC., 2021; p. 130-1, fig. 42). (2) Lyon Collection. Mimasu-mon, or Mitsumasu, is the Ichikawa Danjūrō family crest – three wooden measures, nested square boxes.
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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. -
Uncut fan print (uchiwa-e) with the design of kabuki actor Nakamura Utaemon IV who held the name of Nakamura Shikan II from the 11th lunar month of 1825 to the 12th lunar month of 1835, dressed in a checkered kimono, holding a pipe and surrounded by flying fireflies. Character: Nakamura Utaemon IV [中村歌右衛門] (Japanese, 1796 – 1852); other names: Nakamura Shikan II, Nakamura Tsurusuke I, Nakamura Tōtarō. Series title: Catching fireflies in the floating world [浮世蛍狩] (Ukiyo hotarugari). Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞], a.k.a. Toyokuni III (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Kōchōrō Kunisada ga [香蝶楼国貞画] in a red cartouche. Publisher: Ibaya Kyubei [伊場屋 久兵衛] (Japanese, fl. 1804 – 1851); seal: modified Marks 19-009 | 126d. Censor's seal: Kiwame Date seal: Tenpō 2 (1831). Ref: Kunisada.de, N58. A look-alike yearlier Kunisada's design can be found at kunisada.de, ref. # N120-Z0172-410:
Actor Onoe Baikō, artist Kunisada, publisher Ibaya Kyūbei, c. 1820.
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Artist: Utagawa Kuniyoshi [歌川 國芳] (Japanese, 1798 – 1861) Publisher: British Museum provides for the title as Enkyoku-zoroi [艶曲揃] (Set of Voluptuous Melodies) and the publisher as Sanpei. Indeed, 三平 (Sanpei) was a wholesale fan shop at the end of the Edo period. However, Andreas Marks identifies the publisher’s seal as 三平 Mihei = Mikawaya Heiroku (1848-56), a member of the Fan Producing Guild (AM 11-016|325a). Block carver: Hori Take [彫竹]Signed: Ichiyosai Kuniyoshi ga in a red cartouche and sealed with paulownia (kiri mon).
Date seal and double nanushi censor seals: Fuku & Muramatsu, 1853 (Kaei 6, 2nd month).
Size: Uchiwa-e (untrimmed fan print) 229 x 294 mm.
Provenance: The Collection of Paul F. Walter, Christie's, New York, 2017, lot 338; sold together with 10 other fan prints for $27,500. Before: Christie's, New York, 1994, lot 145 ($4,830). Ref: [LIB-1693.2018] The Collection of Paul Walter. — NY: Christie's, 2017, p. 361. Ref: Israel Goldman, Catalogue 2018, № 41: "Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797-1861) A Woman on a Terrace Dancing with a Fan. From the series Enkyoku zoroi (Collection of Charming Music). 1853. Fan print. 22.9 x 29.4 cm. Provenance: Japanese Prints, Paintings and Screens, Christie's, New York, 1994, lot 145 ($4,830); The Collection of Paul F. Walter, Christie's, New York, 2017, lot 338. Fine impress." Known prints in this series:
SVJP-0251.2018
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Artist: Utagawa Kunisada, a.k.a. Toyokuni III (Japanese, 1786 – 1865) [歌川 国貞]. Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, fl. C. 1845 – 1847). Date aratame seal: Bunsei 12 (1829). Signed: Gototei Kunisada ga [五渡亭国貞画]. Media: Fan print (uchiwa-e), 238 x 267 mm (overtrimmed). Actor: Iwai Shijaku I [紫若] (Japanese, 1804 – 1845); other names: Iwai Matsunosuke I [岩井松之助]; Iwai Hanshirō VII, Iwai Shijaku I, Iwai Komurasaki I. The background is Arare-ko-mon [霰小紋] hail pattern. In the red cartouche at the top right is the series title "Edo no hana – itsutsu Karigane" (江戸の花 五雁金), to be translated as "Flowers of Edo - the five Karigane blood-brothers" (or "the five Karigane gang members"). Another print from the series in this collection: SVJP-0304.2019. -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Publisher: Iseya Sōemon [伊勢屋惣右衛門] (Japanese, c. 1776 – 1862). Signed: Kunisada ga within a double toshidama. Date-kiwame seals: Bunsei 11 (1828). -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Kunisada ga [国貞画] in a yellow double-gourd cartouche. Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburo [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, fl. c. 1845 – 1847). Date aratame seal: Bunsei 13 – Tenpō 1 (1830). Actor: Nakamura Utaemon IV [中村歌右衛門] (Japanese, 1796 – 1852); other names: Nakamura Shikan II [二代目中村芝翫], Nakamura Tsurusuke I, Nakamura Tōtarō. Play: Yoshitsune’s Letter at Koshigoe [義経腰越状] (Yoshitsune Koshigoe-jo). Uncut fan print (uchiwa-e, 団 扇 絵), 229 x 267 mm, depicting kabuki actor Nakamura Shikan [中村芝翫] as Gotobei [五斗兵衛]. Nakamura Utaemon IV held the name of Nakamura Shikan II from the 11th lunar month of 1825 to the 1st lunar month of 1836. He was born as Hirano Kichitarō in Edo in 1796. Another fan print with the same subject in this collection [SVJP-0344.2021]:
"...The play Yoshitsune Koshigoe-jo was originally written for the puppet theatre (Bunraku) and staged for the first time in the 7th lunar month of 1754 in Ôsaka at the Toyotakeza. It was a revision of two early plays, Namiki Sōsuke's Nanbantetsu Gotō no Menuki (1735) and Yoshitsune Shin Fukumijō (1744). The title, which suggested that the play focused on Minamoto no Yoshitsune, was in fact dealing with the siege of the Ōsaka Castle, led by Tokugawa Ieyasu to destroy the Toyotomi clan in 1614 and 1615. This play was quickly forbidden because of the 4th act in which Gotobei's wife fired a gun at Yoritomo (this was of course interpreted as an attack on the Shogunate). Yoshitsune Koshigoe-jo was revised in 1770 by Toyotake Ōritsu, who completely rewrote the 4th act for a puppet production at the Kitahorieza in Ōsaka". Yoshitsune Koshigoe-jo was staged for the first time in Edo, at the Ichimuraza on the 9th lunar month of 1790, and is still performed.
Gotobei [五斗兵衛] (Gotohei or Gotobē), one of Yoshitsune’s loyal retainers, is forced to choose between his son’s life or his loyalty to Yoshitsune. Nishikidō brothers, who do not want Gotobei to become Yoshitsune's chief strategist, forced him to drink sake and get asleep. To prove Gotobei's military abilities, Izumi no Saburō fires a gun next to Gotobei's ear, and "he jumps up immediately, in full possession of his senses, ready to repulse any enemy". See: [LIB-1193.2013] Samuel L. Leiter. Kabuki Encyclopedia: An English-language adaptation of Kabuki Jiten. — Westport, CT; London: Greenwood Press, 1979; pp. 266-7).
Ref: [LIB-2993.2022] Fig. 24 in Israel Goldman. Japanese prints and paintings / 40th anniversary; Catalogue 27, 2021.
Two more Kunisada's fan prints (in Paul Griffith's collection), depicting the same actor Nakamura Shikan II as Toneri Matsuōmaru [舎人松王丸] were published in 1832 by Iseya Ichiemon. The play was Sugawara's Secrets of Calligraphy [菅原伝授手習鑑] (Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami). See: [LIB-1212.2017] Robert Schaap. Kunisada: Imaging, drama and beauty / Introduction by Sebastian Izzard, contributions by Paul Griffith and Henk. J. Herwig. — Leiden: Hotei Publishing, ©2016.
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Artist: Utagawa Kuniyoshi [歌川 國芳] (Japanese, 1798 – 1861). Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, c. 1815 – 1869). Date-aratame seal: 1827 (Bunsei 10). Inscription: Ohan [おはん], Chōemon [長右衛門] | Dainingyō [大人形] | Yoshida Senshi [吉田千四)] | unclear (work in progress). Sam. L. Leiter describes the play in his Kabuki Encyclopedia (1979) p. 183, and Japanese traditional theatre (2014), p. 252 as "Love Suicide of Ohan and Choemon at the Katsura River" (Katsuragawa Renri no Shigarami) [桂川連理柵], a two-act play by Suga Sensuke [菅専助] (ca. 1728 – 1791) written in 1776 for the puppet theatre jūruri and adopted for Osaka kabuki in 1777. Yoshida Senshi, a.k.a. Yoshida Bunzaburo III was a Japanese puppeteer of a Yoshida lineage. The line was established by Yoshida Bunzaburō I [吉田文三郎] (Japanese, fl. 1717 – 1760), who was one of the greatest in the history of Bunraku [人形浄瑠璃] (ningyō jōruri) and who around 1734 introduced the three-man puppet manipulation system. A portrait of Yoshida Senshi, who died in 1829, can be found in the Kunisada's triptych at Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, ID Number 2016:37.2.).
The design on our fan print looks very much like the one of Toyokuni I at MFA (Houston): OBJECT NUMBER 2006.378. "Seki Sanjuro as Obiya Choemon and Ichikawa Denzo as Ohan of the Shinonoya from the Kabuki Drama Katsuragawa renri no shigarami (Love Suicide of Ohan and Choemon at the Katsura River)", according to MFA-H published by someone Tsuruya in c. 1810 (though the publisher's seal is Suzuki Ihei [鈴木伊兵衛] (seal name Suzui [鈴伊]), Marks 01-028 | 502; the censor's seal is gyōji, date 1811-14).
Interestingly enough, the description provided by Kuniyoshi Project is this "Actors: Onoe Kikugorô III as Shinanoya Ohan (おはん, female) and Ichikawa Ebizô V as Obiya Choemon (長右衛門, male). Play: Go chumon shusu no Obiya (御注文繻子帯屋). Date: 3rd month of 1840. Theater: Kawarasaki. Publisher: Iba-ya Sensaburô".
The play Go chumon shusu no Obiya was indeed staged at Kawarazaki theatre in 1840 (Tenpō 11), 3rd month; Ichikawa Ebizō V was indeed playing Obiya Choemon but Onoe Kikugorō III had the role of Kataoka Kōzaemon, not of Ohan, as can be seen on Kunisada's diptych at MFA (Boston): ACCESSION NUMBER 11.40671a-b.
Actors Ichikawa Ebizô V as Obiya Chôemon (R) and Onoe Kikugorô III as Kataoka Kôzaemon (L)
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Artist: Utagawa Sadahide [歌川 貞秀], a.k.a. Gountei Sadahide [五雲亭 貞秀] (1807 – c. 1878/9). Publisher: Iseya Ichiemon [伊勢屋市右衛門] (Japanese, fl. c 1823 – 1864), seal name Kaku-Tsuji [角辻]. Signed: Gountei Sadahide ga [五雲亭貞秀画] Censor's seal: kiwame, date seal: Tenpō 3 (1832). Size: Uncut fan print (uchiwa-e); 218 x 282 mm. Portrait of a young woman dressed in a green kimono decorated with arabesque (karakusa) and flowers, her black obi adorned with a dragon, in a western-style frame, on a blue background; and a painting of a parrot on a pomegranate tree. A similar design was used by Sadahide in 1860, described in detail by Sebastian Izzard in his Japanese Prints of the Mid-Nineteenth Century: 1830–1865, September 20–October 24, 2006 exhibition: Picture of a Curio Shop in Yokohama: reverse painting on glass of a crimson parrot, coloured copperplate engraving of a mother and child (Yokohama urimono mise no zu: gyokuban abura-e, doban-e saishiki). Colour woodblock print: oban tate-e, 143/8 x 93/4 in. (36.5 x 24.8 cm.); Man-en I/3 (3/1860) Series: Picture of Goods for Sale in Yokohama (Yokohama urimono zue no uchi) Signature: Gountei Sadahide ga, double toshidama seal Publisher: Daikokuya Kinnosuke.
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Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Kunisada ga [国貞画] in a red double-gourd cartouche Publisher: Unknown (no seal). Date: c. 1832 Izzard: "... red cloth decorated with the characters Yauan, one of Ichikawa Danjūrō VII [市川団十郎] (Japanese, 1791 – 1859) poetry names, and the name of his residence in Fukagawa. The absence of publisher's emblem and censorship seals may indicate that this was a privately issued print, not for public use". Ref.: [LIB-2967.2022] Utagawa Kunisada (1786 – 1865): His world revisited / Catalogue № 17, Exhibition March 17-21, 2021. — NY: Sebastian Izzard, LLC., 2021; p. 112-3, fig. 32). Size: Fan print (aiban uchiwa-e); 235 x 295 mm. -
Artist: Toyohara Chikanobu [豊原周延] (Japanese, 1838 – 1912) Signed: Chikanobu hitsu [周延筆] Publisher: [ 東京掘江町] Tokyo Horiemachi | [えん市製] Enshi-sei. Media: Fan print (uchiwa-e, 団扇絵), 192 x 172 mm. Possibly Iwai Kumesaburō IV [岩井粂三郎] (1856 – 1886) a.k.a. Iwai Hisajirō III [岩井久次郎] in the role of Ono no Komachi [小野乃小町] and Nakamura Shikan IV [中村芝翫] in the role of Kisen Hōshi [喜せん法師]. Play: The Six Immortal Poets in Colorful Guises [六歌仙体綵] (Rokkasen Sugata no irodori). Inscription: Left: Kisen [喜せん] | Shikan [芝翫] Right: Komachi [小町] | Kumesaburō [粂三郎]. Actors: Iwai Kumesaburō IV [岩井粂三郎] (1856 – 1886) a.k.a. Iwai Hisajirō III [岩井久次郎]. Nakamura Shikan IV [中村芝翫] (Japanese, 1831 – 1899); other names: Nakamura Fukusuke I [中村福助], Nakamura Masanosuke I, Nakamura Komasaburō, Nakamura Tamatarō I. -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Toyokuni ga [豊国 画] in a red toshidama cartouche. Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, c. 1815 – 1869). Double nanushi censor seals: Hama & Magome, Kaei 2-5 (1849 – 1852). An uncut fan print (uchiwa-e, 220 x 292 mm) depicts a beautiful woman sitting on a balcony overlooking a bay and reading a book. Above the book, there is an obi with a pattern of stripes or modified key fret motif, with lettering that reads: 菅原島 [Sugawara-jima] and 美立 [mitate]. The lettering and the blossoming plum branch next to the obi provide an allusion to Sugawara no Michizane [菅原 道真/菅原 道眞] (Japanese, 845 – 903) - a prominent scholar and poet of Heian period exiled from Kyoto to the island of Kyushu as a result of another courtier's slander. A legend says that his beloved plum tree was so fond of its master that it flew to Kyushu with Sugawara. The Davis Museum at Wellesley College describes the print as belonging to the series A Parody of Sugawara Stripe Patterns (Mitate Sugawara-jima). To make the fact of an allusion transparent, Kunisada had changed the usual way of writing "Sugawara stripes" from 菅原縞 to 菅原島 and "mitate" from 見立 to 美立. An unusual spelling was also used to provide additional information to the reader in other cultures. E.g. during the Prohibition Era, the West Coast United States speakeasy bars and bordellos misspelt the items on a menu ("scollops") or in a neon sign ("Martuni's") to tell: here we have more pleasures for you than you may have expected. After Tenpō reforms, the printing of bijin-ga (美人画, "picture of beautiful woman") images was restricted. Our print disguises a typical bijin-ga as an advertisement of an obi (帯, a kimono sash) fabric pattern. "The market of portraits was satisfied and the authorities fooled" [Rebecca Salter. Japanese popular prints. — Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2006]. -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞] a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, fl. C. 1845 – 1847). Date seal: [子五] Kaei 5, 5th month (5/1852). Signed: Toyokuni ga [豊国 画] in a red toshidama cartouche. Title: Actor Bandō Takesaburō I as clerk Seijūrō [手代清十郎] (left) and Actor Ichikawa Kodanji IV as Kenkaya Gorōkichi [喧嘩屋五郎吉] (right) in the play Musume ōgi tsui no tatehiki [娘扇一対侠贔屓 (むすめおうぎついのたてひき)] performed at the Nakamura theatre [中村座], in Edo (Tokyo). The playbill for this performance can be found at MFA (Boston) # 11.28042, 11.28285, 11.28286:
Actors:
Bandō Takesaburō I (初代坂東竹三郎) (Japanese, 1832 – 1877); other names: Shinshi, Shinsui V, Bandō Hikosaburō V [五代目坂東彦三郎], Bandō Tsurunosuke I.
Ichikawa Kodanji IV [市川小團次] (Japanese, 1812 – 1866); other names: Ichikawa Yonejūrō I, Ichikawa Yonezō III, Ichikawa Eizō.
Similar images were then used for the series Seven flourishing plants on lanterns for summer evenings [涼調珍盛の七草] (Suzumi chōchin sakari no nanakusa) published by Ibaya Senzaburō in 1852 (Kaei 5), 6th month.
Bandō Takesaburō I (carved by Yokokawa Takejirō): https://collections.mfa.org/objects/219360
Actor Ichikawa Kodanji IV (carved by Nakamura Tōkichi): https://collections.mfa.org/objects/477146.
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Kabuki actor Arashi Kichisaburō III [嵐吉三郎] as Sarushima Sōta [猿島惣太] in the play Hanamo Yoshida Iwao no Matsuwaka [花吉田岩尾松若] staged at Ichimura-za (市村座), theatre in Edo. Artist: Utagawa Kunisada, a.k.a. Toyokuni III (Japanese, 1786 – 1865) [歌川 国貞]. Publisher: Kojimaya Jūbei (Japanese, 1797-1869), seal: Hanmoto, Jū [板元, 十] (Marks 19-043 | 264c. Date seal and double nanushi censor seals Mera & Watanabe – 3rd month of Kaei 6 (1853). Signed: Toyokuni ga [豊国 画] in a red toshidama cartouche. Media: Fan print (uchiwa-e), 223 x 294 mm. Kabuki actor Arashi Kichisaburō III [嵐吉三郎] (Japanese, 1810 – 1864); other names: Arashi Daizaburō III, Arashi Kitsusaburō III Ref.: Art shop Ezoshi Ukiyoe new collection news, vol. 66, 2023.1 (Jan) # 30, p.8. -
Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞], a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代 歌川 豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Toyokuni ga [豊国 画] in a red toshidama cartouche Block carver: Yokokawa Takejirō [横川竹二郎] (Japanese, fl. 1845 – 1863), seal: 彫竹 – hori Take. Publisher: Ibaya Senzaburō [伊場屋仙三郎] (Japanese, fl. c. 1845 – 1847). Media: Untrimmed fan print (uchiwa-e), 230 x 295 mm. Combined date seal and kiwame censor seal: Ansei 6 (1859). Title: Princess Sotoori [衣通姫] (Sotoori-hime) – Sotoori-hime was a concubine of Emperor Ingyo (reigned AD 412-53), and one of the Three Gods of Japanese Poetry [和歌三神] (Waka sanjin). Series: Chronicles of Elegant Women [風雅女史傳] (Fūga joshiden). The sign on the torii (Shinto shrine gates) reads: Mountain king shrine [山王宮] – it is the Sannō Shrine at the Nagata Riding Grounds in Edo. A print with these gates is at MFA (Boston) # 21.9853.
Other prints from the same series in this collection:
SVJP-0343.2021 — Tamagiku:
SVJP-0400.2023 — Saiko:
Note: Special thanks to Horst Graebner, who helped decipher and understand the meaning.
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An uncut fan print shows a young woman holding a basket on a landscape background with hills and pines under a rising sun. Haruo Shirane: "Under the luni-solar calendar, the New Year coincided with the beginning of spring, making it the most important observance of the year for the aristocracy. In the Heian period, New Year ceremonies extended from New Year’s Day (Ganjitsu) to the Day of the Rat (Nenohi), which usually fell on the seventh day of the First Month, when courtiers went out to the fields (no), pulled up small pines, and gathered new herbs (wakana) as a prayer for long life. This ritual gradually spread to the provinces and to commoners, eventually resulting in the New Year practice of the gate pine (kadomatsu), in which a pair of small pines was placed at the gate of a house. A popular Heian-period painting topic representing the First Month was “prayers on the Day of the Rat” (Nenohi no asobi), which depicted the auspicious scene of pulling up small pines in a spring field. Both young herbs and gathering young herbs, particularly at Kasuga Field, became major poetic topics for the First Month, appearing in both the spring and celebration (ga) books of the Kokinshū (Collection of Japanese Poems Old and New, ca. 905). By the Kamakura period, the observance of the Day of the Rat had been abandoned at the imperial court, but the custom of gathering and eating young greens continued as the annual ceremony known as the Seven Grasses (Nanakusa). Note: The Heian-period ritual of pulling up the roots of small pines (komatsu ) on the first Day of the Rat derives from the homonyms ne (rat) and ne (root). Pulling up roots was auspicious, since it implied lengthening the year. The rising sun (hinode) was considered an auspicious sight, particularly at the beginning of the year". [Haruo Shirane, Japan and the Culture of the Four Seasons. Nature, Literature, and the Arts. — Columbia University, NY, 2012]. Title: Gathering of the young herbs on the Day of the Rat [子の日乃若菜] (Nenohi no wakana). Series: Three elegant sources of light [風流三光の内] (fūryū sankō no uchi); meaning the sun, the moon and the stars). Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川 国貞]; a.k.a. Utagawa Toyokuni III [三代歌川豊国] (Japanese, 1786 – 1865). Signed: Toyokuni ga [豊国 画] in a yellow toshidama cartouche. Publisher’s seal: Izuzen (Marks: seal 06-029 | U103b) Date and double nanushi censor seals: Mera and Watanabe, Kaei 6 (1853). A similar theme can be found in Kunisadai's triptych published in about 1844 (HARA SHOBO):
豊国三代「豊歳子日若菜摘ノ図」
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Artist: Utagawa Yoshitsuya [歌川 芳艶] (Japanese, 1822 – 1866). Publisher: Kojimaya Jūbei [小島屋重兵衛] (Japanese, c. 1797 – 1869). Date seal and double nanushi censor seals: Kunigasa & Yoshimura, Kōka 5 (1849). Signed: Ichieisai Yoshitsuya ga [英斎芳艶画] in a red double gourd cartouche. Two men are fishing with a net off the coast of Shinagawa, in the Edo Bay.
