Natori Shunsen (1886-1960)
The actor Kataoka Nizaemon XIII as Momoi Wakasanosuke (Kataoka Nizaemon, Momoi Wakasanosuke), from the series New Versions of Figures on the Stage (Shinpan butai no sugata-e), 1953
Woodblock print, mica background
Signed: 'Shunsen'
Artist's seal: 'Shunsen'
Publisher: Watanabe Shozaburo (round red Watanabe seal above left shoulder)
Date: 1953, 11th month (Showa 28)
Signed: 'Shunsen'
Artist's seal: 'Shunsen'
Publisher: Watanabe Shozaburo (round red Watanabe seal above left shoulder)
Date: 1953, 11th month (Showa 28)
Vertical dai oban:
39.5 x 26.9 cm. (15 ½ x 10 ⅝ in.)
39.5 x 26.9 cm. (15 ½ x 10 ⅝ in.)
Very good impression, colour and condition.
£ 1,300.00
This print depicts the actor Kataoka Nizaemon XIII in the role of Momoi Wakasanosuke from Kanadehon Chushingura ('The Treasury of Loyal Retainers'), the celebrated kabuki drama commonly known in the...
This print depicts the actor Kataoka Nizaemon XIII in the role of Momoi Wakasanosuke from Kanadehon Chushingura ("The Treasury of Loyal Retainers"), the celebrated kabuki drama commonly known in the West as The Forty-Seven Ronin.
The play is rooted in historical events that began in 1701, though the drama transposes its setting to the 14th century. It tells the story of forty-seven masterless samurai who band together in secret to avenge their lord, Enya Hangan, who is driven to ritual suicide (seppuku) after striking the corrupt and contemptible court official Ko no Moronao. The vendetta, its planning, and its ultimate execution form one of the most enduring narratives in Japanese culture.
Wakasanosuke occupies a pivotal position in the drama's opening act. A young, hot-headed samurai of comparable rank to both Hangan and Moronao, he is goaded and humiliated by Moronao's provocations much as Hangan is — and indeed comes perilously close to drawing his sword against the official before being dissuaded. It is this simmering conflict between Moronao and the samurai under his authority that sets the tragedy in motion, making Wakasanosuke's role essential to the drama's unfolding, even though he is not among the forty-seven loyal ronin who carry the vendetta to its conclusion.
The play is rooted in historical events that began in 1701, though the drama transposes its setting to the 14th century. It tells the story of forty-seven masterless samurai who band together in secret to avenge their lord, Enya Hangan, who is driven to ritual suicide (seppuku) after striking the corrupt and contemptible court official Ko no Moronao. The vendetta, its planning, and its ultimate execution form one of the most enduring narratives in Japanese culture.
Wakasanosuke occupies a pivotal position in the drama's opening act. A young, hot-headed samurai of comparable rank to both Hangan and Moronao, he is goaded and humiliated by Moronao's provocations much as Hangan is — and indeed comes perilously close to drawing his sword against the official before being dissuaded. It is this simmering conflict between Moronao and the samurai under his authority that sets the tragedy in motion, making Wakasanosuke's role essential to the drama's unfolding, even though he is not among the forty-seven loyal ronin who carry the vendetta to its conclusion.