JAPANESE ART > UKIYO-E WOODBLOCK PRINTS > THE NIGHT ATTACK OF THE FAITHFUL SAMURAI

Lot 00896
N.1 triptych of ukiyo-e woodblock prints

Utagawa Yoshiiku

THE NIGHT ATTACK OF THE FAITHFUL SAMURAI

Year: 1852
Condition: good
Size: 74,5 x 37 cm

SOLD

Important triptych of woodblock prints made by the artist Utagawa Yoshiiku (歌川芳幾) and printed in December 1852 by the publisher Izumiya Ichibei (和泉屋市兵衛), owner of Kansendo (甘泉堂). The work is entitled "The Night Attack of the Faithful Samurai" (義士夜討図) and depicts the legendary assault of the forty-seven ronin (四十七士) on the residence of Ko no Moronao (高師直).

In the three panels, the artist portrays the entire group of famous warriors. In the foreground, Yoshiiku presents the climax of the fighting inside the building, while in the snow-covered garden of that night between 14 and 15 December 1702 he depicts, on the right table, the two protagonists of the famous event, namely: Oboshi Yuranosuke (大星由良之助), the leader of the ronin who seems to check the successful outcome of the clashes and, just stylized in the background of the scene, the evil Ko no Moronao in the moment in which he is captured.

The prints on Japanese washi paper (和紙), despite the right signs of aging including wrinkles and fold marks, are in overall good condition.

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