OJAC Collection - Kabuki actor in the role of Ashikaga Yorikane

Bookmark: http://12.201.107.98/objects-1/info/1189

Kabuki actor in the role of Ashikaga Yorikane

c. 1859
19th century
14 1/4 in. x 9 3/4 in. (36.2 cm x 24.77 cm)

Utagawa Kunisada I (Toyokuni III), Japanese, (1786–1865)

Object Type: Asian

Medium and Support: Oban; multicolored woodblock print on paper

Credit Line: Gift of Reilly Nail and Matilda Nail Peeler

Accession Number: 1981.342

Object Description

In this vertical oban print a kabuki actor stands against a bamboo railing behind which are blossoming cherry trees and a lantern. The actor is dressed in a beautiful robe decorated with a design of bamboo plants and birds. He holds a fan in his right hand and has a sword tucked into his belt sash. He stands on geta (high wooden platform shoes). The actor is in the role of Ashikaga Yorikane, a character from a 19th century play called Rustic Genji, loosely based on the famous Genji Monogatari (Tale of Genji), a Heian period novel written in the early 11th century by Lady Murasaki Shikibu. This is one print from a triptych. It has a signature and seal of Toyokuni III, a publisher’s seal of Ibisuya, and a censor seal of Hare IX, published ca. 1859.

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This object has the following keywords:

Asian, Japanese, Print, Work on paper