TSUKIOKA YOSHITOSHI / WOODBLOCK PRINT
Ichimura Uzaemon XIII as Benten Kozō Kikunosuke
- Keyes number
- 58
- Publication date
- 3/1862
From the play Aoto zōshi hana no nishiki-eObanImage courtesy Egenolf Gallery
Catalogue notes
This print depicts Benten Kozō Kikunosuke; Egenolf Gallery identifies the actor as Uchimura Uzaemon XII, while the Keyes database records Ichimura Uzaemon XIII. Egenolf identifies the design as a scene from the kabuki play Aoto zōshi hana no nishiki-e, in which Benten Kozō has already inflicted a fatal wound on himself and braces against a pole arm while blood pours from his abdomen. The print also reveals part of the character’s famous tattoo. Egenolf notes that the play premiered at the Ichimuraza in 1862 and belongs to the familiar story of the five dandyish thieves, reflecting the official moral theme of “encouraging the good and punishing the evil.” The gallery records the print as an ōban and gives the signature as Ikkeisai Yoshitoshi ga.
The image is currently unavailable.