Posts by Richard Kruml:
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size.
Koshibe no Sugaru amidst a thunderbolt and lightning captures a raiju (thunder monster) in the village of Toyora. Toyora no sato ni rai o torau. Its body was composed of lightning and usually in the form of a wolf or dog. Its cry sounded like thunder. Raiju is the companion of Raijin, the Shinto god of lightning. Although normally tranquil, during thunderstorms it became agitated and attacked trees. (Those that are struck by lightning are said to have been scratched by Raiju’s claws.) He presented it to the Emperor. Published by Nishimura-ya Yohachi, c. 1834-5. Robinson SIc.2. A wonderful design.
Superb impression. Very fine colour and condition. Signed Ichiyusai Kuniyoshi ga.
Status: Sold
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. Shows Matsuura Sayohime at the top of Kagami Mountain at Matsuura sadly watching her departing husband, Otomo no Sadehiko, on his way to Korea. It’s told she prayed with such fervour that she was turned to stone. From the set Kenjo reppuden, “Stories of Wise and Virtuous Women.” […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. Kaneko Kugutsune (aka Okane, Kane-jo, and Omi no Okane) from the set Chuko meiyo kijin den, “Stories of Remarkable Persons of Loyalty and High Reputation.” Published by Iseya Ichiemon or Enshuya Matabei (this design) 1845. Robinson S35.5. Known as the Strong Woman of Omi, she is credited with […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. Musashi-bo Benkei of herculean strength subdued by the young Onzoshi Ushiwaka Maru (Yoshitsune) on Gojo Bridge. The story relates how Benkei (1155-1189) 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 a […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. “Flood” from a series Seiu kandankei, “A Barometer of Emotions.” Shows Nakamura Shikan III as Abe Bungo no Kami riding his horse through waves. Published by Okura Magobei 1876-77 (this being 1876). A rare set with some striking designs comparing actors in theatrical roles with meteorological phenomena. Fine […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. The death of the Daimyo Imagawa Yoshimoto (1519-60) by Oda Nobunaga during the battle of Okehazama which was fought at night during an intense downpour and was the culmination of the feud between the Imagawa and Oda clans. The battlefield is now a park and a national historical […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. Yamamoto Kansuke striding through the snow. “Boar” from a set Mitate junishi, “Selection for the Twelve Signs.” Published by Ibaya Kyubei, c 1845. (Kansuke was famous for killing a giant boar in the snow.) Robinson S38.12. Fine impression, colour and condition. Signed Ichiyusai Kuniyoshi ga. Status: Sold
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. A vertical diptych Seigen daraku no zu showing the priest Seigen of the Kiyomizudera Temple in Kyoto and the beautiful Sakura-hime (Princess Sakura). Several versions of the story exist. In one, Sakura-hime is Seigen’s long-deceased lover reincarnated as a young priest called Shiragiku. In another, Shiragiku is the […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. The fifteen year old Otani Furuinosuke killing a giant boar with his bare hands. From a set Honcho Suikoden goyu happyakunin no hitori, “One of the Eight Hundred Heroes of the Water Margin of Japan.” Published by Kagaya Kichiemon c 1831. This is the first edition: It was […]
Utagawa YOSHITSUYA (1822-1866)
Click here to view image full size. A fine design showing the outlaw Yasusuke Hakamadare surrounded by a giant snake amidst falling leaves. He was able to disguise himself using the skins of animals and this translated into the notion that he could transform himself into these creatures or conjure them up as in the […]
Utagawa YOSHIYUKI (Active 1848-1864)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych showing one of the great combats of the Gempei wars during the battle of Ichi-no-Tani to the west of Kobe in 1184. In the centre the Taira leader Satsuma no Kami Tadanori holds down the Minamoto Okabe Rokuyata Tadazumi. On the left Gennai Saemon Hidekata and […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. A complete diptych showing Miyamoto Musashi dressed for travelling looking across at Sasaki Kojiro who stands in profile with clenched fist. These two great swordsmen agreed to fight on April 13, 1612, on Ganryu Island off the coast of Bizen Province. The outcome was that Musashi killed Kojiro. […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. Jigoku Dayu, the “Hell Courtesan” from the set Chuko meiyo kijin den, “Stories of Remarkable Persons of Loyalty and High Reputation.” Published by Iseya Ichiemon or Enshuya Matabei (this design) 1845. Robinson S35.3. She was a courtesan who found enlightenment through the Buddhist monk Ikkyu. (The fly-whisk she […]
Utagawa KUNISADA (1786-1865)
Click here to view image full size. Shows the monk Mongaku Shonin doing repentance under the Nachi waterfall in winter. The story relates how Endo Morito (the secular name of Mongaku) falls in love with Kesa Gozen, the beautiful wife of his colleague Watanabe Wataru. Eventually she conspires to allow him into their bedroom at […]
Torii KIYONAGA (1752-1815)
Click here to view image full size. Shows Benkei humourously kneeling to tie his slipper prior to the fight on Gojo Bridge. The story relates how Benkei, of Herculean strength, was subdued by the young Onzoshi Ushiwaka Maru (Yoshitsune) on Gojo Bridge. Benkei was wandering around Kyoto with the intention of relieving 1000 samurai of […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. A heavily tattooed fishmonger, Danshichi Kurobei, slaughtering his father-in-law, Mikawaya Giheiji, in a swamp. From a set Eimei nijuhasshuku, “Twenty-eight Famous Murders with Verse.” A series produced with Yoshiiku, each designing 14 prints. Published by Kinseido between 1866 and 1869, this being 1866. The story relates how Kurobei […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. Tanaka Kanhachi falling backwards into a sea of mud from a set Kaidai hyaku, “Yoshitoshi’s Selection of One Hundred Warriors.” Sixty-five prints published by Ohashiya Yashichi between 1868 and 1869, this being 1869. The text in the square cartouches in this set refer to prominent warriors in the […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. The boy warrior Sakai Kuzo hurling a te-yari spear from a set Kaidai hyaku, “Yoshitoshi’s Selection of One Hundred Warriors.” Sixty-five prints published by Ohashiya Yashichi between 1868 and 1869, this being 1868. The text in the square cartouches in this set refer to prominent warriors in the […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1798-1861)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych Gishi shiju shichi-nin hommo wo toge…. Shows the Forty-seven Ronin crossing Ryogoku bridge with the head of their enemy while on the way to the Memorial Temple after carrying out their revenge. Yuranosuke bows to a mounted official on the near side. Published by Yamamoto-ya Heikichi […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych showing Raiko and his four companions conquering the demon of Oe Mountain. Raiko shitenno Oeyama kijin taiji. The story relates how the demon (Shuten-doji) kidnappes young girls and keeps them captive in his lair on Mt. Oe near Kyoto. The great warrior Minamoto no Yorimitsu (Raiko) […]
New Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych , Shinyo rokkaisen, “Six New Monsters” showing Taira no Kiyomori (1118-1181) and his lover on the engawa of the palace confronted by a multitude of snow covered skulls and skeletons in the garden. Towards the end of his life, Kiyomori, the head of the Taira Clan, […]
Ichiyusai KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych Fuji no sono Soga kyodai hommo o togeru zu. “Moor at the Foot of Mt. Fuji: Picture of the Soga Brothers Achieving their Avowed Wish.” Soga no Goro Tokimune and Soga no Juro Sukenari avenging the death of their father by killing Kudo Suketsune at his […]
Utagawa KUNISADA (1786-1865)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych showing the great wrestling match between Matano Goro Kagehisa and Kawazu Saburo Sukeyasu. The match was refereed by Ebina Gempachi and occurred during a hunting expedition organised by the general Minamoto no Yoritomo in 1176 near Mt. Akazawa. Kawazu was the eventual victor after a rematch, […]
Utagawa YOSHIKAZU (Active 1850-1870)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych showing Miinamoto no Yorimitsu (aka Raiko) and his retainers confronting the giant Earth Spider (Tsuchigumo – a form of spider-like yokai). After a fierce battle Yorimitsu cuts off the head of the spider and 1990 dead victims emerge from its stomach. A popular subject and there […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych showing Shutendoji’s palace on Mount Oyeyama, Oyeyama fukujin shusei. Raiko (Minamoto no Yorimitsu) is charged by the Emperor Murakami with killing the evil Shutendoji who terrorizes the neighbourhood. He and his retainers infiltrate the castle and ply Shutendoji and his ogrish band with sake and dance […]
Utagawa YOSHITORA (Active c 1850-1880)
Click here to view image full size. A triptych showing Sato Masakiyo, having invaded Shikoku and overthrowing the castle of Shosokabe Motochika, entering deep into the mountains where he battles an army of huge toads, lizards, bats, spiders, cats and dogs. Sato Masakiyo Shikoku seibatsu no toki Shosokabe Motochika no honjo o semeotosu ori kara […]
Utagawa KUNISADA (1786-1865)
Click here to view image full size. Kan Zhang Liang (below) and Huang Shigong from the set Kan-So gundan, “Battle Tales of the Han and Chu.” The success of the Chinese warrior tales retold by Takizawa Bakin (1767-1848) in his novel “The Water Margin: New Illustrated Edition” published in 1805 resulted in the commissioning of […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. Abe no Hirafu fighting a giant bear in the snow from a set of 51 prints Dai Nippon meisho kagami, “A Mirror of Famous Commanders of Great Japan.” The set was published by Ebisuya Shoshichi (the first 11 prints) and Funazu Chujiro between 1878-1882. Hirafu was a general […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. Yatsunada attacking Saohime’s brother’s castle from a set of 51 prints Dai Nippon meisho kagami, “A Mirror of Famous Commanders of Great Japan.” The set was published by Ebisuya Shoshichi (the first 11 prints) and Funazu Chujiro between 1878-1882. Saohime had conspired with her elder brother Saohikoto to […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. The heavily tattooed bandit Tanmeijiro Genshogo grappling with an adversary under water. One of the great designs from Tsuzoku Suikoden goketsu hyakuhachi-nin no hitori, “The Hundred and Eight Heroes of the Popular Suikoden, One by One.” Genshogo was famous for his tattoos and for the ability to stay […]
Kobayashi KIYOCHIKA (1847-1915)
Click here to view image full size. The Sennin Kinko (Chin. Ch’in Kao) riding a giant carp from the set Ressen gachu. There are various versions of this story. One narrates how Kinko was bathing in the river one day when the king of the fishes invites him to his kingdom. He tells his pupils […]
Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861)
Click here to view image full size. The brigand Saginoike Heikuro Masatora plunging a short sword into a giant boar. He is usually depicted battling a giant snake. Published c 1834-5 by Sanoya Kihei. Republished by Uedaya Kyujiro. Robinson S1c.17. Very good impression and colour. The title label at extreme left edge trimmed and slight […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1812-1866)
Click here to view image full size. A diptych showing the strong woman Oiko of Takashima. The story tells how the wrestler Saeki Urinaga spies her one day fetching water from the river. He lecherously reaches for her only to have his arm pinned down by her as she nonchalantly carries on walking. She leads […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1812-1866)
Click here to view image full size. The actor Ichikawa Kodanji IV as Torii Matasuke clenching a sword between his teeth in pouring rain. From the play Kagamiyama gonichi no Iwafuji performed at the Ichimura Theatre, 3/1860. The plot centres around Lord Taga who is disloyal to his wife Lady Ume with Oryu. One of […]
Utagawa YOSHIKAZU (Fl. 1848-1870)
Click here to view image full size. Daimotsu no ura nanpu no zu, “Adverse Wind on Daimotsu Bay.” The ghosts of the Taira warriors attacking Yoshitsune’s ship in Daimotsu Bay. Minamoto no Yoshitsune (1159-1189) aboard his ship Tsukimaru sailing along the coast of Settsu Province at Daimotsu. It was here that the Minamoto and Taira […]
Utagawa SADAFUSA (Active 1830s – 1840s)
Click here to view image full size. An original sumi woodblock for two chuban prints from a Kanadehon Chushingura set. The upper design being Act VII, the tea-house Ichiriki, Kyoto with Yuranosuke; the lower showing Act VIII, the bridal journey with Konami and her daughter Tonase on the Tokaido Road. Sold “as is” with all […]
Utagawa KUNIMARO (Active 1850-1875)
Click here to view image full size. An oban showing Jiraiya (Ogata Shuma Hiroyuki), a ninja who was able to transmogrify himself into a giant toad. His arch enemy was Orochimaru, a master of serpent magic, who is seen here as a giant snake. Jiraiya kills the snake with his heavy o-zutsu, hand cannon. Based […]
Utagawa YOSHIKAZU (Active c 1849-1867)
Click here to view image full size. Kato Kiyomasa (aka Masakiyo, 1562-1611) hunting man-eating tigers with his cohorts in Korea. Masakiyo ko toragari no zu. Kiyomasa had two expeditions to Korea in 1592 and 1597. Published by Hiranoya Shinzo, 1861. Fine impression, colour and condition. Signed Ichikawa Yoshikazu ga. Status: Sold
Utagawa YOSHIIKU (1833-1904)
Click here to view image full size. Torii Matasuke swimming underwater from a set of 28 prints Eimei nijuhasshuku, “Twenty-eight Murders with Verses.” The set was published jointly with Yoshitoshi, each contributing 14 prints. Matasuke is seen gripping the topknot of the severed head of his lord whom he has mistakenly murdered. Published by Kinseido […]
Tsukioka YOSHITOSHI (1839-1892)
Click here to view image full size. The best design from the set Tsuki hyakushi, the “Hundred Phases of the Moon.” The set published between 1885 and 1892 (this being 1886) by Akiyama Buemon. Benkei against a full moon. In 1185 Yoshitsune, attacked by his half-brother Minamoto no Yoritomo, was forced to flee to northern […]