Utagawa Kuniyoshi 歌川国芳

Nakamura Kansuke Masatatsu (中村勘助正辰)

Maker

Utagawa Kuniyoshi 歌川国芳 (1798-1861
b. in Edo, Japan)
Sumiyoshiya Masagōrō 住吉屋政吾郎 (Japanese, active in Edo, Japan 1804 - 1860), publisher

Title

Nakamura Kansuke Masatatsu (中村勘助正辰)
from the series Portraits of the Faithful Samurai of True Loyalty (Seichū gishi shōzō 誠忠義士肖像)

Period

Edo Period

Year

1852, 12th month

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

ink and color

Supports

Geography

Place Made: Japan

Dimensions

Vertical ōban: 37 x 26.8 cm (14 9/16 x 10 9/16 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Signature: 国芳画
Translation: Pictured by Kuniyoshi

Seals: Printer's seal: 摺大久 Suri Daikyū
block carver's seal: 横川彫竹 Yokokawa Hori Take
Censor's seal's: 衣笠 Kinugasa, 村田 Murata, 子十二 Rat 12

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Helen M. Danforth Acquisition Fund

Object Number

1987.043.4

Type

Exhibition History

The Artistry of Utagawa Kuniyoshi
Oct 07, 2023 – Apr 28, 2024

Label copy

Lauded for his depictions of warriors, Kuniyoshi here captures not only the dynamism of the samurai Nakamura Masatatsu, but also his strength and endurance. Masatatsu bites his lip, narrows his eyes, and raises his sword as he fends off a blazing-hot pan that has been thrown at him. 

This print is part of a series of portraits inspired by historical events surrounding a group of samurai avenging their lord, who was unjustly forced to commit suicide.    

Poets, Heroes, and Courtiers
Literary and Narrative Traditions in Japanese Prints
Sep 06, 2002 – Dec 01, 2002

Label copy

This series of portraits by Kuniyoshi depicts the forty-seven ronin, or masterless samurai, who diligently plotted to avenge the death of their master, Asano Naganori. Asano was humiliated by Kira Yoshinaka, an official at the court of the shogun; after Asano drew his sword against Kira, he was ordered to commit suicide. Two years later, Asano’s loyal retainers stormed Kira’s mansion and killed him. This story is narrated in numerous forms and is known as the Treasury of Loyal Retainers (Chushingura).

19th-Century Japanese Printmaking, Part I
The Heroic, Bizarre, and Supernatural
Sep 09, 1998 – Dec 06, 1998

Image use

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Public Domain This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Utagawa Kuniyoshi 歌川国芳 (1798-1861
b. in Edo, Japan)
Sumiyoshiya Masagōrō 住吉屋政吾郎 (Japanese, active in Edo, Japan 1804 - 1860), publisher
Yokokawa Takejirō 横川彫武 (Japanese, 1800s, Edo, Japan), block carver
Nakamura Kansuke Masatatsu (中村勘助正辰); from the series Portraits of the Faithful Samurai of True Loyalty (Seichū gishi shōzō 誠忠義士肖像), 1852, 12th month
Polychrome woodblock print
Vertical ōban: 37 x 26.8 cm (14 9/16 x 10 9/16 inches)
Helen M. Danforth Acquisition Fund 1987.043.4

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