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Utagawa Toyokuni II
"Gonta and Osato, Walking Beauty in Winter Eve, " Japanese Color Woodcut

1856

About the Item

This woodblock print depicts two characters from the play Godairiki Koi no Fujime, Igami no Gonda and Koman, a Geisha. The play tells the story of Koman, who is in love with the noble samurai Satsuma Gengobei (also called Katsuma in earlier versions of the play). Out of love, Koman writes the word godairiki on her shamisen guitar, as was tradition for a geisha swearing fidelity to her lover. However, the evil samurai Sasano Sangobei tricks Koman into rewriting the pledge to look like a pledge to him. When Gengobei sees this rewrite, he becomes convinced that Koman is unfaithful to him, and kills her. Eventually Gengobei learns of her innocence through a letter she wrote, and at the end of the plays kills Sangobei out of vengeance. The artist for this artwork, Utagawa Toyokuni III, is also known as Utagawa Kunisada, an artist famous for his depictions of Kabuki actors. Thanks to records of what plays Kunisada depicted, we were able to discern that Kunisada went to see a similar play in June of 1856 at the Nakamura theatre in present day Tokyo. The actors portrayed in this print are also recorded. Iwai Kumesaburo III played the geisha Koman, and Seki Sanjuro III had two roles, the minor role of Igami no Gonda pictured here, and that of the evil samurai Sasano Sangobei. 13 1/2" x 9 1/4" art 21" x 16 7/8" frame
  • Creator:
    Utagawa Toyokuni II (1777 - 1835)
  • Creation Year:
    1856
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 21 in (53.34 cm)Width: 16.875 in (42.87 cm)
  • Medium:
  • Period:
  • Framing:
    Frame Included
    Framing Options Available
  • Condition:
  • Gallery Location:
    Milwaukee, WI
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: 8712g1stDibs: LU605312850232
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