Kunisada: Danjuro IX as Shirafuji, with Ehon scene of Women looking at Ukiyo-e

Artist: Utagawa Kunisada (1786-1865)
Title: Kakuta Brigade, Extra (Bangai), Sekiya no sato: Actor Kawarazaki Gonjûrô I as Shirafuji 「関屋の里」「白ふじ　河原崎権十郎」（初代）

Series: Edo no hana meisho-e 江戸廼花名勝会 (Flowers of Edo and Views of Famous Places) Date: 1863

Kawarazaki Gonjuro (Danjuro IX) is shown lower right; he wears the jaunty scarf of his character and a kimono with a pattern of stylized carp and waves. We see him  parting a noren curtain that hangs at the entrance to an establishment.  Ichikawa Danjuro IX held the name of Kawarasaki Gonjuro I from 1852 to 1869. Shirafuji Genta was a wrestler character in kabuki plays that were written about the lovers Oshun and Izutsuya Denbei. 

At left is a landscape by Hiroshige II, and above is an interesting rendering of an ehon (woodblock-printed picture book) done in tones of grey. It shows a woman in festive attire looking through a sheaf of actor prints that seems to have been given to her as a gift. A second woman bows down in front of her. This upper design was done by Kunisada II. The district of Sekiya was in the northern outskirts of Edo, along the banks of the Sumida River.

The term “flowers of Edo” (Edo no hana) can refer, among other things, to fires. The title panel for each print in this series shows the lanterns and identifying standard (matoi) for one of the brigades of firefighters (hikeshi) assigned to various districts. On the west side of the Sumida River were 48 brigades named for the symbols of the kana syllabary and grouped into 8 numbered groups (1 to 10, minus the bad-luck numbers 4 and 7). On the east side of the river, brigades were numbered and assigned to directional groups. Outlying districts were covered by special brigades, here designated “extra” (bangai). Each title gives the name or number of a brigade, its group, and its district, followed by the kabuki scene chosen to match it. Each print highlights the most famous aspects of an individual district in Edo, and includes a scene from the district and a kabuki actor portrait that relates to the place in some way. There is a lot going on in each design, as in the upper right are the standards and lanterns for specific fire brigades, and on the upper left are usually magic lantern slides. Then there are one or two designs that comprise the lower portion, with Kunisada designing the actor portrait and various (21! in total for the series) other artists designing the landscape scenes. 

Condition: Excellent color. Very good impression and color. 

Dimensions: ôban (35.3 x 24.2 cm)
Publisher: Katôya Iwazoô (Seibei)
Literature: See MFA, FAMSF (Achenbach) museums online for other works from this series.  Signature: Toyokuni ga

SKU: KUS580