Toyohara Kunichika (1835-1900) Sawamura Tanosuke III as the Wife of Shimizu Muneharu, 1865. Oban.
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The very attractive print by Kunichika is a puzzle… from a series which seems rare or little known at least, and a print that has very little information in the usual reference and museum records. The print is quite early in Kunichika’s career, and therefore might have been from a short edition; it also shows many of the design and drawing traits of his teacher Kunisada. The subject is a portrait of the actor, Sawamura Tanosuke III (1845 - 1878). Let’s not forget that being a kabuki theatre portrait, Sawamura was male, an onnagata actor who specialised in female roles. In the year this print was made he was only at the start of his career, at twenty years of age, and in this year a wounded foot caused gangrene to set in. Everything was done to save him, and he was taken to Yokohama, where an American medical missionary was consulted. Both feet, however were amputated.
Here he plays the wife of Shimizu Muneharu. It is such a mysterious image… the barely understood astronomical dome, the zodiac calendar, the three stars in the sky… what can it mean? Well, the series title (I can only find one other print from this series) is, Bravery or Brave Actions of the Taiheiki. The Taiheiki refers to a great historical chronicle of the 14th century, detailing the struggles and heroism of the warring states period prior to Japanese unification. This print shows the loyal wife of a commander of the period, Shimizu Muneharu. In 1582, Muneharu’s castle was under siege by the warlord Hideyoshi. Hideyoshi diverted a river, flooding the moat and threatening the castle. Hideyoshi offered a peaceful settlement but only if Muneharu took his own life… seeing the situation was hopeless, Muneharu rowed out into the water, recited his death poem and ended his life. Watching the situation unfold, Muneharu’s wife took her own life and those of her children by drowning in the swollen moat.
To unravel the print then requires this knowledge. In the foreground is a male actor playing a female heroine in a kabuki role; behind her is the river in flood that will take the lives of her and her children. In front of her is a western astrological dome and another instrument that looks zodiacal. She gazes up to the sky where the three stars of Orion’s belt loom above. The stars of Orion are the crest of the Mori clan, their allies and overlords, (in the case of Mori Terumoto) who were later rewarded by Hideyoshi in settlement of the dispute. The die is cast and she sees the future tragedy unfold before her. Her dignity foretells a worldview in which death is neither a failure nor an end, but a step in the ongoing journey of the soul. Rooted in a belief that the spirit transcends the body, and that life is but a chapter in a greater unfolding, this understanding has endured in Japan since the Jōmon era. The cranes on her kimono symbolise fidelity and loyalty and a strong attachment to marriage.
This is a great looking print and it embodies so much that is inherent in Japanese woodblock prints… allegory, beauty, philosophy and allusion. Really a superb object. The print is in reasonable condition, there is embossing to her collar, the colour is very good, a good impression.
Publisher: Sanova Tomigoro.
35 x 25 cm.
