Konishi Hirosada (ca 1810 - 1864) Chuko Junishi no Uchi (Loyalty and Fidelty for the Twelve Signs of the Zodiac): Tiger - Arashi Rikan III as Watonai, c.1848. Deluxe Chuban.
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This fine print by the Osaka artist, Konishi Hirosada (ca 1810 - 1864), is a mitate…
a kind of puzzle picture. The puzzle here though is more serious than
mere entertainment. In the 1840’s in Japan but especially in Osaka, a
crumbling and centuries old government was attempting to stay afloat by
imposing strict anti-decadence laws… sometimes referred to as the Tenpo
Reforms. These prohibited the depiction of actors or theatre subjects, a
genre that had been hitherto, wildly popular among kabuki fans.
Artists and publishers attempted work-arounds by producing recognisable
prints of unnamed actors, often in imaginary roles or else in roles not
taken in real life. These prints were then issued under the guise of
approved subjects… moral tales, views of famous landmarks or as in this
case, the signs of the zodiac.
Deciphering these prints at such a distance is quite a task. Osaka prints are less well known, were produced (albeit to extraordinary quality) in small numbers and short print runs and the school tends to be under-represented in the literature. This portrait is that of the kabuki actor Arashi Rikan III as Watonai, from the play Kokusenya kassen… based on the drama, "the Battle of Coxinga" starring the reckless warrior hero Watonai.
The Chinese Ming Emperor is counselled by two rival advisors, Ritoten and Gosanki. The evil one of the two plucks out his own eye to deceive the Emperor of his loyalty only to mock him and stab him to death. Gosanki saves the Emperor’s sister, Sendan who later dies but not before giving birth. They travel to Japan and are washed up at the home of a family of exiles and their son Watonai. They all vow to restore the Royal Family and travel back to China, landing in the midst of a tiger hunt. Fearless Watonai hunts and kills the tiger and the evil Ritoten’s retainers; and they come to the home of Kinshojo, the half sister of Watonai and her husband General Kanki.
Kinshojo is overjoyed to be reunited with her family but General Kanki refuses to be united with Watonai. As a consequence, Kinshojo and her stepmother kill themselves, uniting the families through sacrifice and together they defeat Ritoten and restore the child Emperor.
The Zodiac sign is, Tiger’, and for obvious reasons Watonai is an apt choice of role. Arashi Rikan played the role in fact, and this part is not an imaginary performance. The series title translates, Loyalty and Fidelity for the Twelve Signs of the Zodiac, hence the roles portrayed here illustrate some aspect of that sentiment. The portrait of the actor Arashi Rikan is superb and the actor is kitted out in the traditional garb for the performance, a red tunic with pom poms attached to the sleeves. The upper right frame is the zodiac sign for tiger and the left represents a scene from the part where Watonai pursues the tiger through the pouring rain. The game, if you like… then as now, is to connect all the elements to form the entire, allusive picture.
All of the prints in this series were found in a very battered concertina album of the period. In order to rescue the prints, remove them from the decaying acidic backing card and repair the wormholes, the complete album has had to be disassembled. Nevertheless the prints have been conserved and are in outstanding condition, aside from some repaired worm damage, principally to the plain margins. The complete deluxe set in this condition even with the marginal damage is very rare. Each print is exquisitely produced with deluxe embossing, double printing, mica and metallics… it is a masterpiece of the woodblock art. Aside from the worm damage the prints are all in very fine condition. The impressions and print quality are perfect, the condition is fine with no fading and and no discolouration. Since it was necessary to separate the prints from their backing etc we feel that the set may reasonably be sold individually or as a complete series.
This print has worm damage to the left and upper margins, and a minor wormhole in the bottom margin and upper cartouche. Otherwise, condition, colour and impression are all fine. Deluxe print with burnishing and mica. Publisher's mark in left-hand margin.
An interesting feature of the set is the fact that they were published by Matsuki Heikichi, a publisher and printer of woodblock prints during the Meiji era, located in Yoshikawa-cho, a considerable distance from Osaka. He was the fourth generation in the family, known later for promoting the work of Kobayashi Kiyochika.
A copy of this series and this print can be found in the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
18 x 24.5 cm.
