Kitagawa Utamaro (1753-1806) - Lot 37

Lot n° 37
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4000 - 5000 EUR
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Result : 8 411EUR
Kitagawa Utamaro (1753-1806) - Lot 37
Kitagawa Utamaro (1753-1806) Oban tate-e, from the series Kōmei bijin mitate chūshingura jūnimai tsuzuki (高名美人見立忠臣蔵十二枚つづき ), Chushingura parodied by famous beauties: twelve plates, Judanme (十だんめ), Act X. Signed Utamaro hitsu, publisher Omiya Gonkuro. Circa 1794-1795. Size: 38.1 x 26 cm This series illustrates the various acts of the famous play The Treasure of Loyal Servants parodied by beautiful women. This print parodies Act X of the play, in which the rōnin test the loyalty of merchant Amakawaya Gihei, who smuggles weapons for them. One night, police officers arrive at Gihei's house, accusing him of helping Yuranosuke, the leader of the rōnin. They order him to open a large chest, but Gihei, who knows that Yuranosuke is hiding inside, climbs on and refuses to provide any information, even when the officers threaten to kill his son. Eventually, it turns out that the fake police raid is a ruse to test Gihei's loyalty to the rōnin. The woman kneeling on the chest embodies Gihei, while the other three represent the rōnin disguised as police officers. They carry boxes containing Chinese porcelain, indicating that a banquet is probably about to take place. References: This print appeared in the exhibition The Riddles of Ukiyo-e. Women and Men in Japanese Prints 1765-1865, Japan Museum SieboldHuis, Leiden, 2023. Reproduced in the exhibition catalog, pp. 64-65. Similar prints reproduced in : Asano & Clark. The Passionate Art of Kitagawa Utamaro (1995) 2 vols. #210-10 Collia-Suzuki. The Complete Woodblock Prints of Kitagawa Utamaro, A Descriptive Catalogue. 2009, p. 146 A similar print in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession number 21.6373.
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