| Method | Woodblock (nishiki-e) |
| Artist | Toyohara Chikanobu (1838-1912) |
| Published | 1881 |
| Dimensions | Ôban tate-e triptych [Each sheet ~15.6 x 10.7 inches] |
| Notes |
Artist Signature: Yoshu Chikanobu Artist's Seal: Chikanobu Publisher: Matsushita Heibei A tripych depicting a scene from the kabuki play Youchi Soga Kariba no Akebono, more commonly known as Youchi Soga, a story from the tale of The Revenge of the Soga Brothers. A particularly favourite subject in ukiyo-e, 'The Soga Brothers' follows two brothers seeking to avenge their murdered father, recounting their trials and hardships along the way. When they were only young boys, their father was murdered by the retinue of Kudo Suketsune, a retainer of a twelfth-century warlord. Toyohara Chikanobu (1838-1912) was a student of Toyohara Kunichika (not to be confused with the Kunichika Toyohara (1835-1900) of the same name). Originally Hashimoto, he took both the last name and the second part "chika" of his master's first name. This followed an old tradition of students inheriting the already established names of their masters. Favourite subjects of Chikanobu were historical and mythological legends and histories from Japan's past and genre scenes with women and children. The percentage of triptychs among the prints created by the artist is maybe higher than for any other artist of the Meiji period. His best known series are triptychs showing court life in and around the Chiyoda Palace. Like Chikanobu's contemporary, Yoshitoshi, his print themes concentrate on the history and traditional values of old Japan. These series must be seen against the background of an era when Japan was striving to adopt Western technology and civilization without any criticism. The Japanese society then regarded their own traditional and culture as something of low value that had to be replaced by Western values as fast as possible. Condition: Repaired tear to left margin on centre sheet. Creasing to sheets. Toning to sheets, especially top right of left panel. |
| Framing | mounted |
| Price | £550.00 |
| Stock ID | 53128 |