STRIKING CHORDS II

Music in Ukiyo-e Prints

Rhode Island School of Design

Spring 2022
THAD-H791-01
STRIKING CHORDS II: Music in Ukiyo-e Prints
Rhode Island School of Design
Spring 2022
THAD-H791-Ukiyo-e Prints
Instructed by Dr. Elena Varshavskaya
Cover design by Alex Zhu
 STRIKING CHORDS II – TABLE OF CONTENTS

STRIKING CHORDS II: MUSIC IN UKIYO-E PRINTS – introduction Elena Varshavskaya 6

Part I. MUSIC & SOCIETY: UNIVERSAL HARMONY & ENJOYMENT FOR ALL
Music, Cosmic Harmony, and Social Order: Hokusai's Vision Cyra Cupid 9
Musical Bond of the Edo Society: Keisai Eisen’s Improbable Trio Jessica Lin 19

Part II. MUSIC AS A CATALYST FOR THEATER & STREET PERFORMANCES

Children’s Daikagura: Designs for Netsuke by Katsushika Taito II Jiyeon Park 29
The Double Grave of Lovers: Jōruri Drama by Utagawa Kunisada C. Cheng, M. Chi, J. Yang 41
Jōruri Theater, Poetry, and De-luxe Ukiyo-e Prints, surimono by Asaka no Katsumi… Jae Nam 51
Music and Magic in Kabuki Theater, by Katsukawa Shunko Alisa Boardman 59

Part III. MUSIC IN THE SUPERNATURAL REALM

Kindred Spirits? Monk’s Music Amusement for Yōkai, Hokusai Manga, v. 12 Kevin Wu 71
Music of the Immortals: Gama Sennin & the Lore of the Moon, by Katsushika Taito II Timothy Li 77

Part IV. MUSIC IN JAPANESE MYTHS, CEREMONIES, & HISTORY

Music in Shinto Beliefs, Hokusai Manga, v. 5 Monet Fukawa, Rose Kim 87
Music in Shinto Ceremonies, surimono print by Yanagawa Shigenobu Junyi Cao 97
Courtier Hakuga no Sanmi & the Mysterious Stranger, Hokusai Manga Maxton O’Connor 105

Part V. MARTIAL MUSIC – THE CONCH SHELL & MILITARY DRUMS

Martial Music and Display of Courage and Vigor in Hokusai Manga, v. 9 Yuhi Chang 115
The Calendar Drum, Rooster, & Good Fortune, by Totoya Hokkei Milo Tomizawa, Zhiying Shi 123

Part VI. MUSIC IN ANNUAL OBSERVANCES & SEASONAL CELEBRATIONS

Stage, Dance, & Good Luck Invocations in Edo Japan in Kunisada’s Spring Pony Dance triptych
I. Quick Observations: The First Dance of the Year. Hanna Suros 131
II. Space: Zashiki & the Pony Dance in Late Edo Period: Yisheng Yuan 133
III. Visual Codes of the Auspicious Spring Carina Zhang 139
IV. Context/Content: Harugoma Dance & New Year Observances Hanna Suros; Roye Zhang 144
V. Closing Remarks: Yisheng Yuan, Roye Zhang 146
Culture Codes of Toyokuni II. Elegant Figures of the East Alex (Jihao) Zhu 151
Benzaiten of the Shinobazu Pond, the First day of the Serpent Nina Hong 157
Exploring Benzaiten in two prints by Toyoshige (Toyokuni II) Baidurjya Madhav 165
Hanami: Sakura Viewing at Asuakyama by Hiroshige - Leslie B. Flores, Ryan B. Hsiao 173

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STRIKING CHORDS II: MUSIC IN UKIYO-E PRINTS

Ukiyo-e or “pictures of the floating world” is a name of urban art style that
initially focused on pleasurable pastimes of townspeople in Japan of the Edo period
(1615-1868). At first, ukiyo-e topics were predominantly associated with beautiful
courtesans of Yoshiwara, the red-light district of in Edo (Tokyo), and with the kabuki
theater. Gradually thematic range widened to embrace seasonal customs and traditions,
views of nature, and national historical and mythological lore. But regardless of the
theme illustrated by ukiyo-e artists, music remained essential whether for scenes from life
and legend.
The theme of music in ukiyo-e prints has been explored by the RISD art history
students for two semesters (fall 2021 and spring 2022) in a hands-on curatorial format.
The resulting exhibition Striking Chords: Music in Ukiyo-e Prints, is on view at the RISD
Museum from February through July 2022.
The spring semester project is virtual. However, the approach is similar – to
comprehensively study music-related prints in the collection of the RISD Museum and to
share the findings with interested audiences, albeit in digital format.
Nineteen prints have been selected. In the exhibition’s virtual space, they are
displayed according to thematic areas. Those display areas include prints illustrating
music played for leisure – sometimes solely for pleasure but occasionally for celebratory
occurrences or for moral instruction. Another area shows prints associated with
professional performers – actors of the kabuki theater, chanters of the puppet theater, or
street entertainers. There are also sections dedicated to prints that depict music performed
within mythical lore, or ceremonial music as well as martial music.
It is no wonder that ukiyo-e artists illustrated musical themes in multifarious
types of print production. The exhibition covers the century of ukiyo-e prints at their
prime – from 1770s through 1860s. The types of prints on display include polychrome
prints nishiki-e or “brocade pictures” as single-sheet compositions or as triptychs.
Represented are commercially produced prints as well as luxuriously published squarish
prints known as surimono with embossing and metallic pigments. More than a third of
the exhibits are almost monochromatic book illustrations. Many come from Hokusai
Manga, "random sketches" by ukiyo-e foremost artist Katsushika Hokusai and from

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books for artisans by one of his students. Altogether, the selection is tremendously rich in
subject matter and gives a good idea of the variety of ukiyo-e styles and their evolution.
By close visual exploration of this selection of prints, by investigating
circumstances of the scenes represented and peculiarities of the objects depicted, by
striving to uncover cultural references imbedded in these images, by listening to music
played on the instruments depicted students who curated this exhibition sought to come
closer to the beautiful and intriguing world of ukiyo-e prints.
The sound continues for but a moment, ukiyo-e prints were designed as
ephemera, but their resonance appears timeless. We hope that this exhibition’s virtual
visitors will echo these sentiments.
Elena Varshavskaya, course instructor
RISD, Spring Semester 2022

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 Part I.
MUSIC & SOCIETY:
UNIVERSAL HARMONY & ENJOYMENT FOR ALL

9
Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849).
Random Sketches by Hokusai - Transmitting the Spirit, Revealing the Form of Things
(Denshin kaishu: Hokusai manga), volume 9, pp. 9-10. 1819. Private Collection.

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 MUSIC, COSMIC HARMONY & SOCIAL ORDER –
Ancient Chinese Philosophical Concept and Japan: Hokusai’s Vision
Cyra Cupid

On this double-leaf spread from volume No. 9 of Hokusai Manga, three figures
take up the stage, two women and a man. Two of the three figures are women musicians
sitting on a rock that is irregular in shape. This rock seems the only indication of the
scene’s setting. Besides this rock the background of the image is blank, showing a single
wash of gray color. The rightmost woman of the two happens to be in the center of the
composition. She is playing a zither – a horizontal stringed instrument known as a koto in
Japanese. To the left of her, another woman is playing a fiddle called kokyū in Japanese.
Lastly, at the very right, a young man is standing solemnly, holding a folded fan, and
equipped with a sword. As has been mentioned, this image is part of a Manga book, by
Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai. The word “manga” is translated from Japanese as
“whimsical” or “random” pictures.
The woman centered in the composition is seated at a narrow table playing a
zither that has seven strings. A zither is defined as a “horizontal plucked chordophone”
by William Malm, a leading authority on Japanese music.1 There are various types of
zithers. Among zithers that came from China to Japan there are the seven-string zither
and the thirteen-string zither. These two types of zithers are quite different in their shape
and in how they were played. The seven-stringed zither came down from China to Japan
during the Heian period (8-12 cc.) but was later discontinued in Japan. Much later,
already in the Edo period (17-19 cc.), it was revived again.2 It is difficult to say what
historic period Hokusai references here, although the entire image abounds in detail,
including representation of the zither.
Among multiple types of zithers, two that are most important to this print are the
seven-string koto and the thirteen-string koto. These two zither types are quite different in

1
William Malm, Japanese Music and Musical Instruments, Charles E. Tuttle Company, Rutland, VT, Tokyo,
Japan, 1959, p. 165.
2
Genshoku Ukiyoe Daihyakka Jiten, Tokyo: Taishukan Shoten, 1998. v. 5, p. 58

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shape and how they are played. However, in Hokusai’s depiction, the print shows a
hybrid of the two instruments.

Fig. A. Seven-string zither “neck” and “waist.” Chart from Wikimedia,

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b1/Qin_part_names.png
Fig. B. Hokusai Manga, v. 10. Musicians and a page, zither detail.

Traditionally, the seven-string zither had two indentations along its body – the
so-called “neck” and “waist” as this is shown on the chart on the right (Fig. A). The
zither depicted by Hokusai also has both – the neck and the waist.
However, it is noteworthy that the zither in Hokusai’s picture has movable
bridges kotoji (琴柱) typically used for playing the thirteen-stringed zither, not the seven-
stringed one played without the bridges. Technically, the strings on the thirteen-string
zither are stretched over movable bridges that are adjusted in advance to achieve the
desired series of tones. To play when the bridges are used, the musician uses plectra or
picks. These picks look like reinforced nails. They are attached to the thumb, index, and
middle finger of the right hand. Fingers on the left hand press down the strings thus
creating varying tension to achieve the desirable sound. Thus, Hokusai depicts the seven-
string zither complete with the characteristic indentations on its body. Yet, it is visibly
clear that in this print this instrument used bridges and picks, exactly like those used on
the thirteen-string zither.
Additionally, in Japan the seven-string koto was commonly placed on the knees
of the player who was sitting on the floor while the thirteen-string was placed on a stand
and the musician sat in a chair. As seen in Hokusai’s sketch, the woman musician is
sitting high on a rock shaped like a chair, which is similar to those who play a thirteen-
stringed zither. It is unclear why Hokusai changed how the traditional seven-string zither
was played in this image. It is difficult to imagine that he made a mistake or disregarded
the existing practice, so perhaps he was depicting here something very specific. Let’s
leave these observations for now and move on with examining the picture.

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Fig. C. Left: Kitao Shigemasa, 1739-1820. Girl as Goddess of Good Fortune, Benzaiten. 1780s
RISD, Bequest of Isaac C. Bates, 13.1368
Fig. D. Scroll painting by Emperor Huizong of the Song dynasty, "Listening to the zither qin"
(Ting qin tu), detail. Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing. Wikimedia commons.

The other woman musician on the far left is playing a kokyū, the only Japanese
traditional instrument that is played with a bow. This instrument is a small, spiked fiddle.
Its resonator is described as a bloated square in shape. It is usually covered in animal
skin. It is built with a two-piece neck, having four frictions, hexagonal-shaped pegs made
of wood, and a long spike at the bottom of the body. Additionally, it is a string with four
silk strings attached to a tailpiece made of silk rope, and a bamboo bridge and nut. 3
According to William Malm, when well played, the kokyū sounds similar to the violin.
When playing, the hairs of the bow are pulled tight by grasping them with the ring and
pinky finger of the right hand. Malm then points out that an interesting aspect of the
kokyū is its high bridge. Because of this arch, one must turn the instrument to play on
different strings. To facilitate this, the instrument is set on a peg which is placed between
the knees.4 Similar instruments are played in many Asian countries, but at the moment we
are concerned with China. In China, there is a comparable instrument called the huqin,
but its soundbox is shaped differently, and more importantly, it doesn’t have a peg at the
bottom. In Hokusai’s depiction, the instrument has more features in common with the
Japanese kokyū mentioned above. However, the shape of the soundbox in Hokusai’s
design here is different from Japanese traditional kokyū. Here, it seems uniquely shaped

3
Russell-Cotes Art Gallery & Museum. https://www.europeana.eu/en/item/09102/_MINIM_UK_43569
4
William Malm. Japanese Music & Musical Instruments, 1959. p. 179-180

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as an elongated trapezoid that is curved inward on each side. Yet, the presence of the peg
indicates that it is definitely a kind of kokyū.

Fig. E. Hokusai Manga, v. 9. Musicians and a page, kokyū player, detail.

Fig. F. Keisai Eisen (1790-1848). Beauties of the Floating World as Three Instruments, 1820s.
RISD, Bequest of Isaac C. Bates, 13.1393

The two traditional instruments that are depicted in Hokusai’s design in question
each possesses several atypical features either in its appearance or in the way in which
the instrument is played. In the top left area of the print, Hokusai includes a short
inscription saying “seichō reika” (盛寵/令可) that was speculated by someone to be
proper names either of the instruments or significant individuals.5 They could, however,
characterize the entire scene referring to prosperity being rooted in the appropriate civil
code. This aspect of the composition will be discussed further.
It is now time to look closely at the musicians depicted. Judging by their
appearance, their quite specific elaborate hairdos, and garments, both musicians are
beautiful women from China.
The hair of the musician playing the zither is pulled back at the front with the
hair mass divided into strands and raised in complex construction. Her sumptuous crown-
like decorations are of exquisite metalwork with a variety of flowers, beads, bell-shaped
dangles, and a magnificent phoenix bird attached at the very center. The phoenix bird is a
symbol of the empress in Chinese tradition. So, this woman might have a close
association with the empress if not the empress herself.

5 https://blog.goo.ne.jp/caneteregardepas/e/6442a4760effd9c20a832d3a4b90f4bf

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 The kokyū player is also lushly coiffured, although with less splendor. Her hair is
softly combed toward the back and is formed into a lavish form of thick upswept strands.
The top construction of her hair is set off by a gorgeous hair ornament shaped by
abundant flower petals, predominantly those of peonies symbolizing prosperity. Her side-
locks are softly wrapped around her ears in a wing-like fashion. Dangling earrings seem
to reach down almost to her shoulders.

Fig. G. Left: Hokusai Manga, v. 9. Musicians and a page, kokyū player’s hairdo. Detail.
Fig. H. Right: Hokusai Manga, v. 9. Musicians and a page, zither player’s hairdo. Detail.

The women’s garments are correspondingly luxurious, abundant, and layered.

They are patterned with complex geometric elements. The zither player is wearing at
least two layers of clothing. The inner lining is printed in a pinkish tone that is visible
around the collar area. The neckline of this layer flows in ripples, creating a soft oval
shape that is cut rather low. The pink garment is visible also at the sleeve openings. The
main layer is a wide dress patterned on the shoulders with dotted areas centered on a
shippo element of interlocking circles. This dress has patterned trim around the collar and
the cuffs. The cut of the dress includes rather a high yoke at the front that seems to be
embroidered in the center. The garment is tied with a belt made of soft fabric. The yoke
itself and the dress below the yoke is white. It is cascading down to the ground. The
lower part of it seems to be decorated with rings with long fringes attached. Garments
reach to the ground, fully concealing the woman’s feet. Below the shoulders, the woman
is wearing a light net-like or net patterned mantle that is also cascading to the ground and
partially lies on the ground as a somewhat angular flap. Altogether the impression is of
lushness, exceeding abundance, and thus of splendor.
The kokyū player is also resplendent albeit a little bit less lavish. She also is
wearing three layers of clothing. Her main dress is dark, almost black, yet patterned. It is
15
patterned with white lines that are discernable all over it. The dress is rather deeply cut as
well and is accompanied by a necklace that has a pendant. The pendants are reminiscent
of the pendant of the central musician’s crown. Over this dress two loose garments are
freely draping. They are differently patterned but both with geometric designs. The
woman’s main dress of patterned black reaches to the mid-calf, leaving her beautiful well
shaped feet visible. The position of her feet suggests that she is tapping to the rhythm of
the music. Both loosely shaped outer pieces of her attire look animated as if they are
flowing down, swinging, and fluttering. The overflowing hem fragments that fall on the
ground create lively patterned shapes, resonating with the one formed by the garment of
the zither musician. It is not quite clear as to what makes the garments so agitated. One
could imagine it being the energy of the music or maybe the movement of the air as the
musicians are out in the elements. In sum, the physical beauty of the participants in this
event as well as the extraordinary visual complexity of their attire and adornments, in
form and pattern, match the refinement of this string musical duo.

Fig. I. Left: Hokusai Manga, v. 9. Musicians and a page, kokyū player’s attire. Detail.
Fig. J. Right: Hokusai Manga, v. 9. Musicians and a page, zither player’s attire. Detail.

Both women stand out for their conformity with the voluptuous ideal of beauty
prevalent in China from the Tang period (618-907) on and remaining relevant in Japanese
traditional culture of the Edo period. Now as for the young official on the right and the
only male in this image, this gentle youth is in attendance as a representative of the

16
authorities. As this will be discussed below, his presence demonstrates dedication of the
authorities to grasping the cosmic order via music to make it a foundation of their rule.
His youthfulness is clearly shown in his hairdo typical for the young males, wakashu. The
front strand of his hair is raised. The middle top portion of the head is shaved, while the
remaining hair on the sides is softly looping down covering half of the ear. The hair at the
back of the head is tied up by a cord that holds the topknot folded forward. The clear, soft
oval of the face appears expressly youthful. The young administrator is wearing a wide-
winged Japanese official outfit known as kamishimo, literal translation of the term being
“the upper and lower.” Kamishimo was an official costume for the warrior class starting
in the 15th century. This outfit consists of a kataginu, the upper part – a robe without
sleeves with exaggerated shoulders, and of a hakama, wide trousers that look like a
divided skirt. Additionally, he is holding a ceremonial fan. This is an attribute of high
office in East Asia. Presence of an official imparts this music performance with a lofty
ceremonial
Fig. K. Right: Hokusai Manga, v. 9. A page who officiates the music performance. Detail.

character of a government-endorsed event. The implication is that the authorities

recognize the extraordinary significance of music as an art form that transmits the
universal order to the society, the concept that dates in China at least 6 th- 5th cc. BCE and
is a part of Confucius teachings.

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 The deep universal meaning of music is rendered here also by the scene’s
wonderous mountainous setting. The scene includes just one natural entity – a craggy
rock but how remarkably it is aligned to the world of humans. The rock is an irregular
formation yet perfectly solid with its peak rising approximately in the middle of the
composition next to the figure in the center. The rock’s shape appears indefinitely varied
with its multiple facets, protrusions and depressions, ledges, and furrows. All
peculiarities of form are rendered with a tremendous calligraphic vibrancy, expertise of
brushwork although achieved in printing. Moreover, the rock is indeed an integral
constituent of the event. It is integrated into the story because it serves as the seat for both
beautiful musicians. The rock and the musicians emerge as equivalents.
Thus, the composition altogether is in full agreement with the ancient Chinese
philosophic concept according to which cosmos, music, and political order are inherently
interconnected.6 By showing side by side Chinese semi-celestial musicians and a
Japanese official in the lofty nature setting, Hokusai affirms relevance of these ideas for
the Japanese culture. The ultimate unity of the cultivated society with nature is revealed.
Hokusai expresses his deep understanding of and veneration for Chinese fundamental
philosophical ideas about the harmony of the universe, music that transmits it, and
societal accord.

Bibliography

“Child as Benzaiten Playing a Toy Zither | RISD Museum.” n.d.

Risdmuseum.org. Accessed May 11, 2022. https://risdmuseum.org/art-
design/collection/child-benzaiten-playing-toy-zither-131368.
Katsushika, Hokusai, and Smithsonian Libraries. 1600. Hokusai Manga. Internet
Archive.https://archive.org/details/hokusaimangav9kats/page/19/mode/1up?view=theater.
“Kokyu.” n.d. Www.europeana.eu. Accessed May 11, 2022.
https://www.europeana.eu/en/item/09102/_MINIM_UK_43569.
Malm, William P. 1959. Japanese Music and Musical Instruments. Rutland
Tokyo Tuttle.

6
This important theme is a focus of attention of many scholars. One of the major publications is by Erica Fox
Brindley Music, Cosmology, and the Politics of Harmony in Early China. State University of New York
Press, 2012.

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19
Keisai Eisen, 1790-1848
From triptych Beauties of the Floating World Likened to Three Instruments, right sheet.
1820s. Publisher: Moritaya Honzo. Polychrome woodblock print.
RISD. Bequest of Isaac C. Bates, 13.1393

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 Musical Bonds of the Edo Society:
Beauties of Different Classes as the Floating World Trio
Jessica Lin

Three stylishly dressed and coiffured women sitting on the ground under the
flowering cherry branches are playing different musical instruments. Moving right to left,
which is the direction of reading in Japan, the rightmost woman is playing a shamisen, a
three-stringed lute-like instrument. The woman in the center is playing a koto, which is a
Japanese name for a zither. The leftmost woman is playing a kokyū, or a Japanese fiddle.
These women are depicted by a ukiyo-e artist Keisai Eisen (1790-1848) in his triptych
Beauties of the Floating World Likened to Three Musical Instruments (Ukiyo bijin mitate
sankyoku), published in around 1820. Each panel depicts one woman, but some visual
elements overflow from one panel to the next such as, for example, the middle figure’s
garment. Thus, all three musicians together clearly form a coherent composition. The
three panels show the same setting marked by cherry blossoms. The coherence of the
composition is defined first and foremost by the fact that these three performers form a
three-instrument ensemble sankyoku that Japan of the Edo period was famous for.

Fig. A. Keisai Eisen (1790-1848), Beauties of the Floating World as an Ensemble of

Three Instruments (浮世美人見立三曲 Ukiyo bijin mitate sankyoku ), 1820s. Keio
University. https://dcollections.lib.keio.ac.jp/ja/ukiyoe/0980

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 Sankyoku or “music for three” started as a two-instrument ensemble
played on koto and the shamisen, and at the end of the 17th century the third
instrument was added, either a biwa lute or a kokyū, Japan’s only bowed
instrument.7 This tripartite composition illustrates such a trio. In it, the players of
the shamisen and of the kokyū are placed symmetrically at the sides of the koto
player, the black lacquer instrument boxes are flanking the side figures.
Most ukiyo-e prints depict music players as courtesans. Courtesans were
professional entertainers employed by the red-like district of Yoshiwara to
entertain wealthy clients. As such, they were trained to be musicians and dancers,
also skillful in writing poetry and leading pleasant communications. Their
services potentially included sexual relationships. Thus, it is correct to expect any
courtesan to know how to play music. And as several could be invited to a party,
courtesans could perform ensemble music. Here, however, according to the
Digital Collections of the Keio University Libraries 8, the artist presented not a
likely real life ensemble performance but a fantasy performance that allowed the
artist to compare and contrast women of different social categories and thus to
present different customs and fashions. Exploration of every facet of femininity is
one of the distinguishing features of ukiyo-e style. This triptych by Keisai Eisen,
one of the leading designers of the bijinga or images of beautiful women, is
believed to portray musicians that were a courtesan, a geisha, and a townswoman.
The woman on the right panel is the most modest one but still is very
elegant. She is nicely dressed and has a beautiful fashionable hairdo. She is a
townswoman. She is wearing two or three layers of kimono and a broad double-
sided obi sash. One side of it is decorated with flowers while the other shows
birds spreading their wings in such a way as to form a circle.

Fig. B. Patterns on the townswoman’s obi sash.

Left: plum blossoms, right: bird that sread its
wings in a circular manner.

7
William Malm. Japanese Music and Musical Instruments, Charles E. Tuttle, Rutland, VT & Tokyo, 1959, p.
45, 55.
8
Digital Collections of Keio University Libraries, https://dcollections.lib.keio.ac.jp/ja/ukiyoe/0980

22
 She is playing the shamisen. It was common for townswomen to be
trained in playing shamisen. Education started early with an idea that a well-
rounded townswoman would more likely find a reliable spouse or just good
employment in a samurai household. Shamisen is used as entertainment typically
at parties and performances.9
The middle figure is an oiran (花魁) which was a general term for a high-
ranking courtesan. The term was used after the mid-18 th century. She looks
exuberant. Her lavish and boldly patterned garments are billowing high as they
overflow onto the other two prints of the triptych. Decorative motifs include
large-scale peonies in full bloom, imaginary “Chinese flowers” karahana, and
crashing waves adding dynamism to her figure as she is about to play the koto
placed in front of her.
Next to the zither is a tiny black container filled with elongated and
pointed small gold-color objects. This is a box for the picks that a koto player is
using. Called tsume or fingernails, they indeed have the shape of long nails. They
are fixed to tiny bands and are placed on the thumb, index finger and the middle
finger on the player’s right hand. Fingers of the musician’s left hand press strings
down varying the tension and hence modifying the pitch by depressing the strings
to the left of the movable bridges. A small black lacquer box rests on a purple
fabric. All objects used by musicians are beautifully decorated and most elegant.
Three books in different colors scattered on the floor are perhaps song books.

Fig. C. Box for the koto picks – shaped as fingernails they are called tsume (爪).
The oiran has an expressly elaborate hairdo. Her hair is parted in the front.
Between the front part of the hairdo and the bun you see two combs kushi (櫛).
Her harpins are not less than spectacular. She is wearing six two-pronged hairpins

9
Tanimura Reiko, Practical Frivolities: Hie Study of Shamisen among Girls of the Late Edo Townsman
Class. Japan Review 23 (2011): 73-96

23
in the front part of her hairdo and six more heavily adorned with flowers in the
further part of her hairdo. These hairpins are called kanzashi (簪). A flat
implement called kōgai (笄) is placed within the bun to keep it up10.
The left panel shows a young woman playing her fiddle kokyū. She is a
geisha, a professional entertainer who attend to guests during banquets and other
occasions. They are trained in various traditional Japanese arts, such as dance and
music, as well as in the art of communication. A geisha wore her hair in the
Shimada style, simpler than that of a courtesan, and adorned with one or two
hairpins. A geisha is said to be wearing white collar undergarment and a
monochrome kimono with crests, sometimes with elegant patterns on the front
panel of the skirt.11 Although here her outfit is not exactly as described, the collar
of her inner garment is lightly colored, her kimono is monochromatic, it shows
crests at the chest level and on the sleeves. The patterning is present only at the
hem of the kimono and of the long sleeves of the specific youthful type of the
kimono known as furisode or swinging sleeves.
The kokyū that the geisha is playing is a smaller Japanese spike fiddle. It
constructed similarly to the shamisen, with a bloated-square-shaped resonator the
front and back of which is covered with animal skin. The kokyū may have three or
four strings, as here. To play this four-stringed instrument, the musician uses a
bow of significant length. The bow is built with a two-piece neck. There is a long
spike at the bottom of the body. The strings attached to a tailpiece are made of
silk rope, and a bamboo bridge and nut. In order to play the kokyū, the performer
tightly grasps the bow’s hairs with a ring and a little finger of the right hand. The
performer must set up the instrument by placing it on a peg, positioned between
the knees of the player. Kokyu’s body must be turned to play the different strings.
In spite of the difference in the level of decorativeness of the three women,
their represent the same type of beauty. The same website of the Digital
Collections of the Keio University mentions that the beauties’ slanted eyes and

10
Otakinen Museum, https://otakinen-museum.note.jp/n/neae8607b2f17
11
Cecilia Segawa Siegle, Yoshiwara: the Glittering World of the Japanese Courtesan, Honolulu, University
of Hawaii Press, 1993, p. 170.

24
the stooping of the figures was characteristic for the style of the late Edo period,
known as the Bakumatsu (1853-1868).
As has been mentioned earlier, all women are shown under the flowering
cherry blossom branches indicating the season is spring. The artist glorifies the
season of spring. By showing women under the blooming branches makes a
reference to the traditional spring celebration known as a hanami or cherry
blossom viewing. The tradition of hanami consisted of partying with friends in
nature combining observation of the fleeting beauty of the cherry blossoms,
listening to the sounds of nature, playing music and feasting. Though the situation
here is invented by the artist, he is making a reference to the well-established
practice. With a most fine color sensitivity, the artist includes the cherry
blossoms’ light pink color in the ornate robes of the beautiful women. The
rightmost woman has her outer kimono predominantly of this light pink, and there
are inclusions of pinkish fabric patches in the robes of both other women.
According to the artist’s decision, the printer used seven blocks since there are
seven colors: black, muted purple, muted yellow, muted green, brown, light pink,
and light blue.
Coherent as the composition is, each panel of the triptych can be
appreciated independently. This is achieved through the portrayal of each of the
musicians on one panel so that every panel appears as a self-standing portrait.
Moreover, each woman is amply present on her panel, emphasizing her individual
significance. It is also noteworthy that all inscriptions are repeated on each of the
prints. Each print is signed by the name of the artist, Keisai Eisen. Each print has
a seal of censorship approval (kiwame 極), and a seal of the publishing house
Moritaya Honzo (森田屋半蔵).
Additionally, the title of the composition is repeated three times – once on
every panel. In this way, formally every musician’s portrait can function as a self-
sufficient artwork. The inscription done mostly in Chinese characters looks as if
scratched out on the light-purple background of the square cartouches. Such white
writings on color background brings to mind ancient Chinese traditional art form
stone rubbings. The Chinese tradition of cutting in stone records of the events of

25
the past has an extremely long history. Often in such inscriptions the written signs
were carved in intaglio. To create a rubbing, a sheet of thin paper is placed upon
the carved surface of the carved stone. The paper is then slightly wetted and
pressed nicely with a brush so that every detail of the inscription is filled with the
paper. After that the paper’s surface is tapped with ink in such a way that all
raised surfaces become black while all depressed surfaces stay white. The result is
very similar to what we see in Keisai Eisen’s triptych. Using this type of script for
the print titles here perhaps meant to create an association with Chinese cultural
legacy that was highly venerated in Japan during the Edo period. 12 Additionally,
one should remember that in China music was considered one of the essential
means in improving morals in the society. Using a Chinese-style title cartouche in
the image of a music performance points out that music is valued not only
because of its entertaining capacity but also because of its importance for the
society at large.
Keisai Eisen’s imaginary instrumental ensemble of three beauties captures
multiple facets of the Edo period urban culture with remarkable richness. The
triptych introduces ukiyo-e fascination with fashion and allure. The triptych
acknowledges an exceedingly high level of handicrafts, whether in textiles,
apparel, hair accessories, musical instruments and their accessories, book design
and binding, etc. By including cherry blossom branches the triptych reflects
alignment of human life with the seasons, a crucial aspect of Japanese culture.
The triptych pays tribute to the Chinese tradition of stone rubbings as seen in the
inscriptions’ style in the title cartouches. And finally, by showing women across
the Edo society joining their skills and talents in musical performance, the
triptych proves the centrality of music in Edo period Japan.

12
Nishiyama Matsunosuke. Edo Culture: Daily Life and Diversions in urban Japan, 1600-1868. Ed. Gerald
Groemer. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1997. Pp. 13-14.

26
 Bibliography
Malm. William, Japanese Music and Musical Instruments, Charles E. Tuttle, Rutland, VT
& Tokyo, 1959.
Nishiyama Matsunosuke. Edo Culture: Daily Life and Diversions in urban Japan, 1600-
1868. Ed. Gerald Groemer. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1997.
Siegle, Cecilia Segawa, Yoshiwara: the Glittering World of the Japanese Courtesan,
Honolulu, University of Hawaii Press, 1993.
Tanimura Reiko, Practical Frivolities: Hie Study of Shamisen among Girls of the Late
Edo Townsman Class. Japan Review 23 (2011): 73-96
Digital Collections of Keio University Libraries,
https://dcollections.lib.keio.ac.jp/ja/ukiyoe/0980
Ota Memorial Museum. Otakinen Museum, https://otakinen-
museum.note.jp/n/neae8607b2f17

27
28
 Part II.
MUSIC AS A CATALYST
FOR
THEATER & STREET PERFORMANCES

29
Katsushika Taito II, active 1810-1853.
Designs for All Artisans (Banshoku zukō): Volume. II, ca. 1827 (1880). Pp. 23-24.
Children’s Daikagura. RISD. Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 31.398.5

30
 Children’s Daikagura:
Designs for Netsuke by Katsushika Taito II
Jiyeon Park

Six children are playing music or dancing in acrobatic postures. The scene is
naturally humorous in that the dynamic movements of figures contrasts with serious and
subtle facial expressions. The image is depicted in a spread from the second volume of a
five-volume publication Pictorial Studies for Various Crafts - Banshoku zukō, which was
designed by Katsushika Taito II (active 1810-1853), a student of Katsuhika Hokusai
(1760-1849), and was strongly influenced by Hokusai’s fifteen-volume collection of
sketches known as Hokusai Manga. The series of illustrated books was published for
artisans so that they could refer to the designs in this publication. Music and performing
arts were so much a part of life in Edo period Japan that the theme was included into the
book for artisans to be used for decoration of practical objects. And this particular page
depicts a scene performing Edo daikagura for netsuke designs.
In this spread of the page 23 - 24, shows cute boys still possessing the charming
plumpness of the young age. All boys are portrayed with a characteristic hairstyle with
their head shaved and only several tufts are left in place - one on the top of the head, two
- at the sides, and a ridge at the back. The boys are elaborately dressed in what
purportedly is Chinese traditional clothing for the young. They are wearing gown-like
outfits with long trousers and angular soft shoes. The gowns of patterned fabric have
ruffled collars and cuffs that are often trimmed. Although the boys are young, they are
involved in activities that require advanced skills.
On the spread, six boys are depicted, three on each page. Each is accompanied by
a brief inscription defining activity the characters are involved in. The inscription in the
upper part of the left page comments on the purpose of the current design as a whole.
Let’s now consider images of the boys and the writings, moving from right to left and
thus following the order of reading in East Asia. The rightmost boy is a drummer. He is
seated holding a drum between his legs and beating out the rhythm with soft-knobbed
drumsticks. In the inscription at his foot, he is characterized as a musician (はやし / 囃子

31
/hayashi). It is obvious for the onlookers that he is skillful with drumming since he is
playing without looking at his drum, giving all his attention to the acrobatic stunt
performed by two boys to his right.

Fig. A. Katsushika Taito. Designs for All Artisans: Vol. II, ca. 1880. P. 23.
Children’s Daikagura. Detail. RISD. Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 31.398.5

Taiko (太鼓) is the Japanese name for drums, but in other languages, it
specifically refers to Japanese traditional drums. They come in various forms and
sizes and are played in various genres of music including Noh and kabuki theater,
religious music, gagaku imperial court music, festival music, and folk music. The
drum that the boy is playing is a small size chu-daiko, or nagado daiko. As seen
from the print, it is made out of a single tree trunk hollowed to form the drum
body and heads tacked to both ends of the drum shell. This way of attaching heads
to the drum is called hyou, in which the tension of heads is not adjustable and
therefore pitch of the sound is static. Another way of fastening heads to drum is
by using rope, so that the player could adjust the tension. This method is called
shime.13
The acrobatic stunt left to the boy playing taiko is complex and beautiful,
representing a kind of human pyramid. The boy at the lower tier is holding a full

13
Gould, Michael (June 1998). "Taiko Classification and Manufacturing" (PDF). Percussive
Notes. 36 (3): 12–20

32
bridge while the boy at the second tier is balancing on the bridging boy’s belly in
what is known as a scorpion handstand. In this handstand, the spine arches
backward and the feet drop where the crown of the head is. This pose is
recognized as an advanced balancing exercise in acrobatics and is performed here
with dexterity. Next to the bent legs of the second-tier boy there is an inscription
telling that the boys are involved in acrobatics or risky undertaking (かるわざ /軽
業/ karuwaza). Karuwaza means a type of acrobatics that one flies his or her body
lightly to make risky poses or do risky moves.
The acrobats are being watched by still another boy from the other side.
On the left page of the spread a boy seated sideways is extending a fan-like object
across the margin gap between the picture frames. Inscription located next to the
boy’s leg describes him as a narrator (こうじゃう/口上/kōjō). The object in his
hand seems to be a special attribute of a narrator - the so-called a harisen or
hariōgi (張り扇) that is used by various reciters to highlight the rhythm of their
speech (compare with Hokusai Manga, volume 12, showing Jōruri musician and
chanter, current exhibition project). The fan makes noise by slapping something
and was used during Nohgaku (Japanese traditional performing art including Noh
theater, Shiki Sanban, and Kyogen), kodan storytelling (military epic or seidan,
story of the law or politics were told) and rakugo (traditional comic storytelling).
Since the term hariōgi was mostly used in Nohgaku, harisen seems to better
describe the object in the print. It is made by wrapping a divided part of a fan with
paper, then sticking leather or paper on the wrapped fan, and finally attaching a
handle to it.

33
 Figs. B and C. Katsushika Taito II. Designs for all artisans: Vol. II . Pp. 23-24.
Detail, Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 31.398.5

Percussion instruments fully held with hands like harisen were important
components in Japanese traditional music. Shaku byoshi, for instance, is two long
flat wooden plates that were used for keeping the beat in ancient gagaku. This
method of rhythming is called ogi byoshi, and was also used in jōruri . Jōruri is
the collective name of the traditional Japanese narrative musical performances. 14
The narrators would use percussion instruments for the effective delivery. In
kōdan storytelling, harisen is used to signal a change in the scene or to augment a
highlight. There were times that this kind of percussion was substituted by hand
drums along with the development of the instruments. However, there were
occasions that these percussion instruments were used instead of drums, too. 15
Behind the narrator is a boy playing trumpet. He is also sitting sideways,
but looking in the opposite direction, to the right. His mouth is at the mouthpiece

14
“Jōruri - Japanese Wiki Corpus.” Joruri - Japanese Wiki Corpus. Accessed May 10, 2022.
https://www.japanese-wiki-corpus.org/culture/Joruri.html.
15
“Hari-ogi - Japanese Wiki Corpus.” Joruri - Japanese Wiki Corpus. Accessed May 10, 2022.
https://www.japanese-wiki-corpus.org/culture/Hari-ogi.html.

34
to blow, both hands are at the upper tube to hold, and fingers are bent to cover
tone holes. He is gazing at the direction of his instrument, concentrating on
playing music. Next to the figure on the right is written charumera (ちゃるめら),
which is name of the instrument [fig. 4]. It is a woodwind instrument with double
reed on the thin top part. The bottom part where the wind flows out is wide like
that of oboe. Yamaha Musical Instrument Guide explains that both charumera
and oboe are adaptations of zurna, a double reed wind instrument played in
central Eurasia and Western Asia.16 In modern times, charumera is strongly
associated with the street culture of ramen vendors, who pulled food carts and
attracted customers by playing the instrument.
Katsushika Taito’s design of children playing music and involved in
various entertainments includes a scene of a boy performing mizu no kyoku (みづ
のきよ) as it is written in [Figure 5]. Right next to the text, there is a figure of a
standing boy who is balancing a long rod on his forehead while simultaneously
playing a long-necked round lute, an instrument of Chinese origin. It was a widely
loved instrument played in kabuki theater, puppet plays, and other such theater
music, accompaniment to singing, and folk songs from many regions. The type of
instrument is called sanxian in Chinese, which means ‘three strings’ of the lute.
The Japanese version is called shamisen, which also indicates three strings in the
name. Unlike sanxian, shamisen was played by using bachi, a plectrum-like tool
the boy is holding in his right hand. Shamisen came in various forms and details
such as the thickness of the neck, type of bachi, and koma (bridges). Shamisen is
tuned in several ways for different music and can be configured to suit a singer or
other instrument.17 The body of shamisen was first made with snakeskin when it
first arrived in Okinawa, like sanxian did. But in mainland Japan, cat and dog skin
is used. What kind of skin the boy’s shamisen is made of is unclear, but its

16
“Trivia the Charumera Was the Oboe's Cousin,” Trivia：The charumera was the oboe's cousin -
Musical Instrument Guide - Yamaha Corporation, accessed May 10, 2022,
https://www.yamaha.com/en/musical_instrument_guide/oboe/trivia/trivia005.html#:~:text=The%2
0charumera%20was%20a%20woodwind,mouth%20is%20a%20double%20reed
17
“Shamisen.” SHAMISEN | Traditional Music Degital Library. Accessed May 10, 2022.
https://senzoku-online.jp/TMDL/e/02-shamisen.html.

35
circular shape is a common feature of Chinese sanxian. Katsushika Taito may
have designed the form of shamisen to match the Chinese fashion of boys.
Next to the rod that the boy is balancing on his forehead at the very top of
the picture frame there is a ball floating in mid-air. It is not hard to define the
object as a prop for daikagura as the text interprets as acrobatics of water (水の
曲). Kyoku, or kyokuge (曲芸) is Japanese word for acrobatics which explains the
context of figures’ postures. Further referring to the text, the boy is most likely
doing mizukumoi-no-kyoku among various kinds of daikagura performances. In
this acrobatic, the performer uses a long rod, a water-filled cup, and a piece of
string to balance out while moving dynamically.

Fig. 4 and fig. 5. Katsushika Taito. Designs for all artisans: Vol. II, ca. 1880 – p. 26 – children playing music
Detail, Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 31.398.5

Daikagura is a type of satokagura, that are kagura performances done and

viewed by ordinary people. Kagura of the royal court was called mikagura. These
two kinds are distinct musical performances, but they are both chanting and
dancing performances dedicated to gods in Shinto ritual. It is indicated in the
name kagura (神樂), which means the music about gods. Ancient Japanese
documents suggest that the ritual started from the myth of the oracular Ame no

36
Uzume (goddess of the dawn and revelry, see No. 9 in this book) who had
performed a dance in a chapter of Ama no iwato (cave of heaven).18
Since satokagura was a ritual of ordinary people, it is diverse in forms.
Daikagura traces its roots to the Heian period (794-1185), but it first achieved
wide popularity in the Edo period (1600-1868). It is composed of shishimai,
Japanese lion dance, and kyokugei, the acrobatics. Shishimai is believed to have
originated from China and was performed alongside Shinto rituals at special
occasions such as New Year’s celebration or wedding ceremonies. 19 Similarly,
kyokygei was performed at festivals and celebrations to bring good fortune to
participants. One well known acrobatics that is still practiced by modern
performers include “gokai jawan”(five-story bowl), in which the performer
balances a wooden drumstick called a “daijawan” on his chin and then places
boards, bowls, and an object called a keshofusa on top, one after another, while
continuing to keep everything balanced.” 20 Bangas, a performance using an
umbrella and hitotsumari, a performance with a large ball of string are also
common images of daikagura. During the performance, interacting with the
audience was important and music and speech was an important part to achieve
so. Therefore, complete mastery of all of their arts requires proficiency in
dancing, playing instruments, and juggling, all of which entails rigorous daily
practice [Fig. 6].
From the text on the top right corner of the left page, which is read migi
netsuke/ mokuchō katachi (右根付/ 木彫形チ), it could be assumed that the
spread is designed for wooden netsuke since mokuchō katachi means a ‘wooden
form’ [Fig. 7]. Another text that supports the assumption is kebori nari (毛彫ナ
リ) written next to the figure in the far left, which means a carving of a design.

18
“Kagura - Japanese Wiki Corpus.” Joruri - Japanese Wiki Corpus. Accessed May 10, 2022.
https://www.japanese-wiki-corpus.org/culture/Kagura.html
19
“Daikagura!” Metropolis Japan, October 7, 2010. https://metropolisjapan.com/daikagura/.
20
“LICENSED TO ENTERTAIN: New Scheme Gives Tokyo Street Performers Green Light.”
Trends in Japan. https://web-japan.org/trends01/article/021025fas_index.html.

37
 Fig. 6 Kitagawa Utamaro. “Daikagura” ca. 1789
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. LC-DIG-jpd-00628

Fig. 7 and fig. 8. Katsushika Taito. Designs for all artisans: Vol. II, ca. 1880 – p. 26 – children
playing music. Detail. RISD, Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 31.398.5

Netsuke is an ornament that is attached to a tobacco pouch or a wallet with

a cord so that it could be hung from an obi sash. It is an item that reflects Japanese
traditional clothing kimono, a robe tailored in a minimal way and fixed on the
body with an obi around one’s waist. Similar to châtelaine in western culture,
Japanese called the hanging pockets and objects sagemono. The wearer would
dangle netsuke from the top of the obi and let sagemono be placed between one’s
waist and hip. Functionally, netsuke is a unit that prevents sagemono slip down,
but as an adornment, social and cultural contexts underlie each object. Although
netsuke was originally worn by a male warrior class, it later became widely worn

38
with the gaining popularity of tobacco culture [Fig. 9]. By the mid-eighteenth
century, almost every single man of all social tiers (warriors, farmers, artisans,
and merchants) carried at least one sagemono that required netsuke.21 Merchants
who gained economic success were likely to reflect their wealth through netsuke
crafted with valuable materials. However, the most common materials were wood
and ivory. 22

Fig. 9. Kubo Shunman (1757–1820) “Tobacco Pouch and Pipe” Woodblock print (surimono);
H. O. Havemeyer Collection, Bequest of Mrs. H. O. Havemeyer, 1929. JP1954

Netsuke was small and easy to conceal, and considered unimportant in the
eyes of the government, so there was no attempt of regulation. Netsuke carvers
and wearers of Edo period enjoyed this freedom, and varied themes from nature,
myths, historical figures, masks used in theatrical performances, to gods and
demons were depicted on netsuke. Erotica, the grotesque, parodies, and satirical
depictions of elite culture, or even the religious thought and feeling could be a
subject. By the 19th century, artisans formed schools, passing techniques to
apprentices. Design books from skilled carvers were published, and more subjects

21
Okada, Barbara Teri. Netsuke: Masterpieces from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York:
Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1982.
22
Milhaupt, Terry Satsuki. “Netsuke: From Fashion Fobs to Coveted Collectibles.” In Heilbrunn Timeline of
Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2022.
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nets/hd_nets.htm (November 2009)

39
were drawn by printed sources. In this trend, refined and sophisticated technique
became an important feature to make artisans’ work distinctive, rather than the
originality of design. Naturally, netsuke was carved in a much more complex
depiction. Sometimes, a group of figures were portrayed, and each of them
became naturalistic and realistic.
The reason the designer chose to represent figures with playful Chinese
boys for netsuke can be explained with the cultural context. According to the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, One Hundred Children, a Chinese motif became
one of the most popular themes among the kano painters, the official artists who
worked for the shoguns and their vassals during the Edo period. 23 Karako, the
image of Tang-dynasty children, became a popular symbol for longevity and
health for offspring according to the trend.24 It is of commonly found motifs from
Edo ceramics and other crafted objects.
Every single detail in the print is evidence of life in Edo Japan. This single
spread from Pictorial Studies for Various Crafts - Banshoku zukō is an integration
of various fields of art, from music and performance to design and crafts. The
print collection is a cultural portrait of Edo Japan, that reenacts the life of the
ordinary people through their artistic culture.

23
“One Hundred Chinese Boys.” Metmuseum.org. Accessed May 10, 2022.
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/72600.
24
“Seven Gods of Good Fortune and Chinese Children.” Metmuseum.org. Accessed May 10, 2022.
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/45217.

40
 Bibliography

Okada, Barbara Teri. Netsuke: Masterpieces from the Metropolitan Museum of

Art. New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1982.
Milhaupt, Terry Satsuki. “Netsuke: From Fashion Fobs to Coveted Collectibles.”
In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan
Museum of Art, 2022.
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/nets/hd_nets.htm (November 2009)
Gould, Michael (June 1998). "Taiko Classification and Manufacturing" (PDF).
Percussive Notes. 36 (3): 12–20
“Daikagura!” Metropolis Japan, October 7, 2010.
https://metropolisjapan.com/daikagura/.
“LICENSED TO ENTERTAIN: New Scheme Gives Tokyo Street Performers
Green Light.” Trends in Japan. Accessed May 10, 2022. https://web-
japan.org/trends01/article/021025fas_index.html.
“One Hundred Chinese Boys.” Metmuseum.org. Accessed May 10, 2022.
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/72600.
“Seven Gods of Good Fortune and Chinese Children.” Metmuseum.org. Accessed
May 10, 2022. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/45217.
“Shamisen.” SHAMISEN | Traditional Music Degital Library. Accessed May 10,
2022. https://senzoku-online.jp/TMDL/e/02-shamisen.html.
“Trivia the Charumera Was the Oboe's Cousin.” Trivia：The charumera was the
oboe's cousin - Musical Instrument Guide - Yamaha Corporation.
https://www.yamaha.com/en/musical_instrument_guide/oboe/trivia/trivia0
05.html#:~:text=The%20charumera%20was%20a%20woodwind,mouth%
20is%20a%20double%20reed.
Yu, A. C. “Joruri - Japanese Wiki Corpus.” Joruri - Japanese Wiki Corpus..
https://www.japanese-wiki-corpus.org/culture/Joruri.html.
Kitagawa, Utamaro. “Daikagura” ca. 1789. Library of Congress Prints and
Photographs Division Washington, D.C. LC-DIG-jpd-00628

41
Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III), 1786-1865
The Double Grave of Lovers in the Village of Odori in Meguro, for Jōruri – Puppet Theater, from
an untitled series of jōruri libretti. Publisher: Iseya Rihei. Ca. 1832
RISD. Bequest of Isaac C. Bates, accession number 13.1385

42
 The Double Grave of Lovers: Jōruri Drama
Beautiful Woman’s Puppet, Libretto, & Music in print by Utagawa Kunisada
Connie Cheng, Meicheng Chi, Jingjing Yang

A stunning beauty is standing against pages filled with equally compelling

powerful and fluid writing of rather large black script. In his print “The Double Grave of
Lovers in the Village of Odori in Meguro,” a preeminent ukiyo-e artist Utagawa
Kunisada (1786-1865) depicted a high-ranking courtesan oiran as a character from a
puppet play. Her being an oiran became immediately clear for the contemporary viewer
because of how her luxurious obi sash is tied at the front, the style reserved for courtesans
only. Her connection to the puppet theater is revealed in the energetic writing style
characteristic for the texts used by chanters in the puppet theater performances. Details of
text and image provide further information about the story implied.
The largest characters of the inscription in the upper right part of the print inform
the viewer that the scene illustrated here relates to the double grave of lovers and that this
grave is located in the area called Meguro. The rightmost inscription that is slightly
smaller specifies the place as Odori village. This was a widely known story about the
events that allegedly happened around 1679, that is about a century and a half before the
print was designed. In the most well-known version of the legend, Hirai Gonpachi, a
masterless samurai famous for his swordsmanship and good looks once committed a
murder in western Japan and then fled to Edo (Tokyo). In Edo, he fell in love with a
Yoshiwara courtesan called Komurasaki of Tamaya. When Gonpachi was later captured
and sentenced to death, his desperate lover Komurasaki took her life at his grave.25 This
story was probably fiction based on fact. People liked the tragic legend, and soon every
form of popular culture adopted the story.26 To honor sincere affection of Gonpachi and
Komurasaki, people touched by their story, built a tomb known as “double grave of

25
Algernon Bertram Mitford, “The Loves of Gompachi and Komurasaki,” in Tales of Old Japan /by A.B.
Mitford: In Two Volumes. with Illustrations, Drawn and Cut on Wood by Japanese Artists (London:
Macmillan and Co, 1871).
26
Cecilia Segawa Seigle, Yoshiwara: The Glittering World of the Japanese Courtesan, University of Hawaii
Press, Honolulu, 1993, p. 88-89.

43
lovers who died together” – hiyoku-zuka (比翼塚) at Ryusenji Temple in Meguro. The
abbot of Ryusenji Temple specially carved a picture of a Hiyoku no tori (比翼鳥), a
symbol of love and fidelity between the couple, to commemorate this love story.27
Samuel Leiter, a specialist in Japanese theater of the Edo period, explains, “the ill-fated
lovers appealed to the imagination of Edoites,” and being buried together promised
reunification in the next rebirth. The legend of Hiyoku-zuka was often performed in the
jōruri puppet theater.
Jōruri is a form of a puppet theater that came into being around mid-16th century,
having developed from narrative-musical performances. It bears the name of Princess
Joruri, a character from an exceedingly popular romantic story about her and the young
Minamoto Yoshitsune (12 c.), one of Japan’s most loved historic figures. Jōruri puppet
performances are often called ningyō jōruri, or “puppet jōruri.” A similar theatrical form
is known as Bunraku after the name of the person who lent it its distinctive form in the
18th century.28 During jōruri performances, the drama and tragedy of the story were
heightened by the emotive puppet acting, chanting, and shamisen music. In this print,
combining the depiction of the protagonist and emphasizing the musicality and
performance of the story creates an untraditional and immersive composition, an ode to
the inseparability of music and visual representation in Japanese theater and ukiyo-e
prints.
The sacrifice for love, or loyalty, is a premier theme in puppet and kabuki
performances and holds the central place in all plays. Consequently, it is quite predictable
that many ukiyo-e artists have created prints to illustrate different moments of this play.
The artist, Utagawa Kunisada, visualizes the high-ranking courtesan Komurasaki’s
attractiveness in his print. As has been mentioned, she is presented like an oiran, with a
resplendent hairdo and dressed in magnificent clothing. The courtesan wears fourteen
gold-color kanzashi hair pins in her date-hyōgo.29 hairstyle brushed back into a high
ponytail with stylish bangs and prominent baby hairs framing her face. Six of the
kanzashi hairpins feature circular disks framed by tortoise and crane motifs, symbolizing

27
Andreas Marks, Japanese Woodblock Prints: Artists, Publishers, and Masterworks, 1680-1900 (Tokyo:
Tuttle Pub., 2010), p. 236-237.
28
Samuel Leiter. New Kabuki Encyclopedia, Greenwood Press. Westwood, CT & London. 1997, p. 240
29
Kimononagoya. “Kimononagoya.” Kimono Nagoya, August 4, 2017.
https://kimononagoya.tumblr.com/post/163775327732.

44
longevity, and prosperity.30 The courtesan wears a five-layered kimono, with her obi tied
in the front, once again denoting her as a courtesan of high rank as mentioned above.31
Her outermost kimono has purple and blue vertical stripes with yellow birds
flying between them as if in the rain.32 These birds are geese in the upper part of her
kimono and swallows (tsubome) in its lower part. The swallow in Japanese culture
symbolizes elegance and also the home, serves a good omen for travelers. The geese
represent a return to home and loyalty. The kimono layer directly under the outer one
features a blue and white superimposed geometric circle pattern (shippō), which represent
the seven Buddhist treasures, and is frequently seen on women’s kimonos.33 The shippō
pattern is layered underneath a yellow design of spiraling tendrils emanating from a
central four-petal white flower with a circular center on an orange rounded flower shape.
This pattern may be a version of the “Chinese flower” karahana or an abstraction of the
chrysanthemum, an auspicious symbol.34 Her obi belt is bright red, with curling flower
and phoenix feather motifs in white and yellow, with blue interior details. The interior
layers of the garment alternate between red and blue, but the innermost layer is pale gray
with a white trim, both decorated with the sayagata geometric pattern of interlocking
swastikas.

30
“Turtles.” Traditional Kyoto. https://traditionalkyoto.com/culture/figures/turtle/.
31
“Najimu-Japan.” NajimuJapan. http://najimu-japan.com/obi-traditional-japanese-
clothing/#:~:text=However%2C%20another%20exception%20besides%20oiran,and%20fashionable%20for
%20everyone%20else.
32
“The Hidden Language of Japanese Embroidery.” Japan Craft, March 27, 2017.
https://japancraft.co.uk/blog/hidden-language-japanese-embroidery/.
33
Olaf Olsson. “Japanese Patterns & Designs.” https://olafolsson.com/blogs/blog-1/wagara-traditional-
japanese-patterns-and-
designs#:~:text=The%20Shippo%20pattern%20has%20come,never%2Dending%20harmony%20and%20pea
ce.&text=In%20Japan%2C%20the%20crane%2C%20or,tortoise%2C%20or%20Kame%20in%20Japanese.
34
“The Chrysanthemum: A Flower Packed with Symbolism.”
https://www.funnyhowflowersdothat.co.uk/chrysanthemum-flower-packed-symbolism.

45
 The courtesan stands on tall, black geta platform sandals which slant inwards,
and have a red and white toe strap.35 She is barefoot, which is considered part of the
erotic allure of a courtesan.36
Overall, there is much color contrast in her heavy attire, with the yellow details
contrasting with the purple stripes in the outer layer of her garment, and also in the gold-
color hairpins and the abundant purple hair tie. The green-blue of her garments’
underlayers contrasts with the alternating red layers, and the yellow details in every piece
of clothing unify it and make her outfit cohesive. Consistently, the motifs of birds and
flowers appear across her outfit, symbolizing femininity, youth, and beauty, as well as
peace and harmony, although her famous story is tragic.
Besides the figure itself, the rest of the image is filled with a very specific
calligraphy that is typically used to write down the text for jōruri puppet theater. Texts
intended for theater music performances are called "libretto,” or “booklet”. In Japanese,
the libretto for puppet theater is called “yukahon." The term yukahon (床本) means “floor
book.” This is because the books for the narrator were placed on the floor. Thus, the
characters had to be large and distinct. The artist, Utagawa Kunisada, made the best of
the heavy elasticity of the style characteristic for yukahon. He varied the thickness of
lines imitating brush strokes with not just their width but also with contrasting strengths.
The calligraphy that appears in this print covers pages of three open books scattered over
the surface of the print. These pages overlap on the image. The upper right page is
obviously the opening booklet. It is clearly written for the print viewers. Moreover, it is
the title page, so it has the most prominent notation in kanji - Chinese characters, with
their readings added in hiragana. Diverse means are used to create a hierarchy of the
inscriptions. Written signs differ in sizes, heaviness of the line, intensity of black color,
usage of a frame. The page on the left, on the other hand, is the last page of a Japanese
binding book. The bottom page looks like a book that has just been opened not long ago.
The courtesan is standing on this page. Three yukahon booklets scattered around nearly
fill the surface of the print and provide a vivid and dynamic background for the figure.
The calligraphy in the background makes this ukiyo-e print notably different. The colors
of the figure look more vibrant against the black and white pages of powerful calligraphy.

35
“Geta.” Japanese Traditional Clothing. https://japanesetraditionalclothingwafuku.wordpress.com/geta/.
36
“Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire. Courtesan.” PBS. Public Broadcasting Service. Accessed May 10,
2022. https://www.pbs.org/empires/japan/enteredo_3.html.

46
 The libretto in the form of yukahon is used in jōruri, a traditional Japanese
performing art where a storyteller called a tayū tells stories accompanied by a shamisen.
The puppet theater synchronizes narrative recitation, shamisen music and puppetry in the
performance.37 The words of the script are written in large black signs in distinctive
calligraphic style, five lines to a page. These scripts usually encompass a single scene and
are marked with the performance notations of the narrator. They are used both as scores
and as props by narrators in Bunraku and jōruri when they perform on stage.38 Before
reciting, the narrator first raises the libretto to eye level, and bows slightly before putting
it on the kendai, a low rostrum. This small gesture of respect for the text belies its
importance to the performance as a whole.39 According to the official website of the
Bunraku theater, "this is a way of showing profound respect to the lines and narration
techniques which have been passed down from his predecessors."40 In this print by
Kunisada, the exaggerated depiction and enlarged proportion of the text of the play, the
yukahon shows its importance.
As this is explained on the official website of the Bunraku theater, the narrator
moves the story along by skillfully changing his voice, while the sound of the shamisen
reverberates next to him.41 The narrators and musicians for jōruri are expressing the

37
Yasuko Senda, “Bunraku – intangible cultural heritage,” MÓIN-MÓIN, p.210
38
"Yukahon." Japanese Performing Arts Resource Center. http://www.glopad.org/jparc/?q=en/node/22819.
39
Brownstein, Michael. "The Texts of Bunraku." The Barbara Curtis Adachi Bunraku Collection.
https://bunraku.library.columbia.edu/texts-of-bunraku/.
40
Bunraku Kyokai Japan Arts Council, Invitation to bunraku, accessed May 10, 2022,
https://www2.ntj.jac.go.jp/unesco/bunraku/en/index.html.
41
Ibid.

47
emotions of the vivid narratives of the play. The narrator talks using different voices for
each character, crying, laughing, and suffering with his whole body. He invites the

audience into the world of ningyo jōruri with abundant emotions and expressions.

Katsushika Hokusai, ukiyo-e foremost artist, captured the intensity of the jōruri
performance in his collection of sketches, Hokusai Manga, v. 12. With poignancy,
Hokusai rendered the performers’ complete immersion in the story they presented.
Without hesitation, Hokusai distorts the narrator’s and the musician’s faces, emphasizing
their perfect coordination in projecting the emotional content of the puppets' actions
onstage.42
The shamisen has only three strings but creates a very heavy sound. It
demonstrates the depth of feeling of the characters, as well as the atmosphere of the rain,
the wind, and the whole universe. The narrator recites continuously for as long as one and
a half hours. The narrator pushes his voice out from the bottom of his abdomen, so that
his voice reaches to all corners of the theater, and the story is communicated to
everyone.43 Furthermore, the narrator must recite in such a way that the numerous
characters can be distinguished. The narrators have carefully crafted vocal technique for
expressing the emotions of the characters, which takes decades of training to master. The
puppeteer (puppet actor), the very inspirational narrator (tayu), and the shamisen players

42
Laurence R. Kominz, “Puppets of Nostalgia: The Life, Death, and Rebirth of the Japanese Awaji Ningyo
Tradition by Jane Marie Law: Women's Gidayu and the Japanese Theatre Tradition by A. Kimi Coaldrake”,
The Journal of Japanese Studies, Summer, 1998, Vol. 24, No. 2 (Summer, 1998), pp. 406-415
43
"Performers." Invitation to Bunraku., 2017.
https://www2.ntj.jac.go.jp/unesco/bunraku/en/performer/performer1.html.

48
were the leading performers of puppet theater. When audiences watch puppet theater
performances, they are drawn partly by the story or partly by the performance of the
puppets.

Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849). Manga, v. 12. Jōruri musician and narrator onstage (Jōruri
degatari), detail showing emotional intensity of the performance.

The audiences weren't only fascinated by watching the puppets but came also to
listen to the explanations of the famous, talented narrators or to the shamisen music
performers. One can note that the same situation happened to the opera lovers in the
West, who often went to the theater to hear particular singers, not only to watch the story
being performed on stage.44
This ukiyo-e print’s unique composition sets this print apart from other puppet
theater and Gonpachi-Komurasaki themed prints. Kunisada depicts both the jōruri
performance stage details – fragments of the libretto, the main character’s costumes, as
well as the famous love story of Meguro Hiyoku-Zuka, visually intertwining the
experience of the performance and depiction of the tale. Through lush detail and
symbolism, Utagawa Kunisada conveys the poetic and tragic beauty of Komurasaki, her
love story, and how it endlessly lives on through the jōruri stage while proving the
audience continues to be drawn to the theatrical magic of puppet performances of the Edo
age.

44
Stanleigh H. Jones, Hanji Chikamatsu, and Chikamatsu Tokuzō, The Bunraku Puppet Theatre of Japan:
Honor, Vengeance, and Love in Four Plays of the 18th and 19th Centuries (Honolulu, HI: University of
Hawaiʻi Press, 2013), p. 1-10.

49
 Bibliography:
Brownstein, Michael. "The Texts of Bunraku." The Barbara Curtis Adachi
Bunraku Collection. https://bunraku.library.columbia.edu/texts-of-bunraku/.
Bunraku Kyokai(2017), Japan Arts Council, Invitation to bunraku. May 10,
2022, from https://www2.ntj.jac.go.jp/unesco/bunraku/en/index.html.
“Geta.” Japanese Traditional Clothing, May 25, 2020.
https://japanesetraditionalclothingwafuku.wordpress.com/geta/. Japan: Memoirs of a
Secret Empire. Courtesan.” PBS. Public Broadcasting Service.
https://www.pbs.org/empires/japan/enteredo_3.html.
Jones, Stanleigh H (2016), “A Note on the Puppets.” Essay. In Sugawara and the
Secrets of Calligraphy, 269–70. New York, NY: Columbia University Press.
Jones, Stanleigh H., Hanji Chikamatsu, and Chikamatsu Tokuzō(2013). The
Bunraku Puppet Theatre of Japan: Honor, Vengeance, and Love in Four Plays of the 18th
and 19th Centuries. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaiʻi Press
Kimononagoya. “Kimononagoya.” Kimono Nagoya, August 4, 2017.
https://kimononagoya.tumblr.com/post/163775327732.
Leiter, Samuel. New Kabuki Encyclopedia. Greenwood Press, Westwood, CT,
London. 1997.
Marks, Andreas (2010). Japanese Woodblock Prints: Artists, Publishers, and
Masterworks, 1680-1900. Tokyo: Tuttle Pub.
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Department of Asian Art. “The Lovers Miura-Ya
Komurasaki and Shirai Gonpachi.” Metmuseum.org. Accessed May 10, 2022. from
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/36632.
Mitford, Algernon Bertram (1871). “The Loves of Gompachi and Komurasaki.”
Essay. In Tales of Old Japan /by A.B. Mitford: In two volumes. with illustrations, drawn
and cut on wood by Japanese artists. London: Macmillan and Co.
“Najimu-Japan.” Najimu-Japan. Accessed May 10, 2022. http://najimu-
japan.com/obi-traditional-japanese-
clothing/#:~:text=However%2C%20another%20exception%20besides%20oiran,and%20f
ashionable%20for%20everyone%20else.
Olaf Olsson. “Japanese Patterns & Designs.” Olaf Olsson. Olaf Olsson, April 13,
2020. https://olafolsson.com/blogs/blog-1/wagara-traditional-japanese-patterns-and-
designs#:~:text=The%20Shippo%20pattern%20has%20come,never%2Dending%20harm
ony%20and%20peace.&text=In%20Japan%2C%20the%20crane%2C%20or,tortoise%2C
%20or%20Kame%20in%20JapaneseSeigle, Cecilia Segawa(1993). Yoshiwara: The
Glittering World of the Japanese Courtesan. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawaii Press.
Yasuko Senda, “Bunraku – intangible cultural heritage,” MÓIN-MÓIN,
"Yukahon." Japanese Performing Arts Resource Center.
http://www.glopad.org/jparc/?q=en/node/22819.
“Turtles.” Traditional Kyoto. Accessed May 10, 2022.
https://traditionalkyoto.com/culture/figures/turtle/.
“The Hidden Language of Japanese Embroidery.” Japan Craft, March 27, 2017.
https://japancraft.co.uk/blog/hidden-language-japanese-embroidery/.
“The Chrysanthemum: A Flower Packed with Symbolism.” Funny How Flowers
Do That. https://www.funnyhowflowersdothat.co.uk/chrysanthemum-flower-packed-
symbolism.

50
51
Asaka no Katsumi, early 19th c.
Portrait of Kyōka poet Tsurunoya as a Papier-mâché Doll of a Gidayu Chanter. 1823
Carver and printer: Chiyo no Matsuhiko.
Verses by Asaka no Katsumi, Chiyo no Matsuhiko, and Tsurunoya
RISD. Gift of George Pierce Metcalf, 56.039.73

52
 Jōruri Theater, Poetry, and De-luxe Ukiyo-e Prints
Poet Tsurunoya no Osamaru as Gidayu Narrator by Asaka no Katsumi
Jae Nam

When observing the Portrait of Tsurunoya as a Papier-Mache Doll of a Gidayu

Chanter by Asaka no Katsumi, we can recognize a characteristic figure of a theater
narrator in the center of the print. There is an oversimplification to how the figure and the
hands are rendered. Simplified also is the color scheme. Only four colors are used for the
representation of the famous poet. Red hues of high value are used on the upper garment,
lips, and in part of the eyes. Blue hue of high value is used on the lower garment, the
stubble of his shaved beard, mustache, and the crown of the poet’s head. Black is used for
the jacket, the eyes, eyebrows while a yellow hue of high value is used for the badge and
the handheld object of the figure.
There is a sense of humor which derives from the horizontal elongation of the
neck. The grim facial expression, and the simple choice of colors spark curiosity about
the character in the print. Texts take the upper part of the print above the figure. Two red
seals can be observed: the artist’s seal below his signature to the right of the figure and a
small gourd-shaped seal of the print’s producer, Chiyo no Matsuhiko, in the low left-hand
corner of the print. Comprehensive historical information on the personalities involved in
production of this small yet refined print is provided in the profound research article by a
leading ukiyo-e scholar, Roger Keyes.45
The highly simplified aspects of the hands, and the unrealistic posture of the
figure contrasts this work by Asaka Katsumi to all other ukiyo-e prints at the exhibition.

45
Roger S. Keyes. ‘This is What We Accomplished’: An Osaka Print Collector and His Circle. In Amy
Reigle Newland (Ed.). The Commercial and Cultural Climate of Japanese Printmaking. Hotei Publishing.
Amsterdam. 2004. 128-128-134

53
 Simplification in the overall form of the chanter’s figure is explained by the fact
that he is depicted as a folk-art figurine made of papier-mache and provided with a
swinging head, the so-called kubifuri hariko (首ふり張子).

Fig. A. Asaka no Katsumi. Portrait of Kyōka poet Tsurunoya as a Papier-mâché Doll of a Gidayū
Chanter. 1823. RISD. Gift of George Pierce Metcalf, 56.039.73. Detail.
Fig. B. Folk-art mingei, papier-mache dall of Fukusuke, Good Luck deity, with swinging head.
From Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima Prefecture.46

A highly specific, somewhat unnatural pose of the portrayed poet is explained by

the fact that he is shown as a jōruri chanter. Jōruri is a narrative-musical form that
combines recitation by a chanter and accompaniment by shamisen, a three-string lute-like
instrument. Jōruri as a name for a type of theatrical performance comes from the title of a
highly popular ballad that described the romance between Ushiwakamaru (young
Minamoto Yoshitsune, 12th century) and a noble lady, Princess Jōruri - Jōrurihime. This
title was later incorporated in the art of puppeteering and received the name of ningyo
jōruri or “puppet jōruri.” Gradually, the jōruri developed into a dramatic theatrical form
dealing with a wide variety of themes. The role of a chanter was of great significance.
The chanter is holding a special fan-like object called harisen or hariogi. It is
used by the narrator to slap the lectern to highlight the rhythm during his recitation. This
object is used in traditional storytelling known as kodan which refers to war chronicles
and revenge tales delivered in a highly dramatic fashion. The same practice was applied
to the above-mentioned ballad recitations jōruri. This practice is termed shaku-byoshi,
which means “keeping the beat.” In old times slapping a handheld instrument was the
easiest and most widely used way to keep rhythm in Japanese court dance and music and
other performing arts.

46
https://blog.goo.ne.jp/sumikoaizu/e/3d2b4ee6005259a6983ca63d06a462ef

54
Fig. C. Hokusai Manga, v. 12. 1834. Joruri chanter. Private collection.
Fig. D. Takemoto Gidayū (1651-1714), lifetime portrait in the collection of the Komaba Library,
the University of Tokyo.47
Fig. E. Asaka no Katsumi. Portrait of Kyōka poet Tsurunoya as a Papier-mâché Doll of a Gidayū
Chanter. 1823. RISD. Gift of George Pierce Metcalf, 56.039.73. Detail.

As seen in the illustrations above (Figs. C, D, E), recitation in the joruri pupppet
performances was accompanied by striking a fan rhythmically on a block.
It is noteworthy, that simplified as the figure portrayed here is, the person
represented belongs to the most cultured circles of Japan’s society at the time as is
revealed in the above-mentioned article by Roger Keyes.
Obviously, the poet represented in this print and of the artist who portrayed the
poet were well acquainted as suggested by the playful and highly individualized image of
the poet. It is important note that the type of the print under consideration is a surimono,
or a privately commissioned print. Unlike commercial prints, surimono were limited
editions designed for and circulated within highly cultivated groups of print-loving
public. Because of this, typically the subject matter of surimono was more specific
reflecting particular circumstances that could have triggered // inspired creation of the
print. There existed several formats of surimono, but the given surimono is of the most
widespread type. It is a shikishiban, a small print of a near-square shape of 20.8 x 18.4
cm.
According to Roger Keyes, depicted here is a poet Tsurunoya Osamaru (ca.
1751–ca. 1839) whom the scholar characterizes as “the presiding genius of the Crane

47
https://www2.ntj.jac.go.jp/unesco/bunraku/en/history/history2.html

55
Group” of poets. Roger Keyes then tells that Tsurunoya Osamaru was an Osaka merchant
who lived in Edo for a long time and then, on retiring, returned to his native place.
During his stay in Edo, he became a poetry judge and eventually a head of a poetry
group. On his return to Osaka, he took the name of Tsurunoya, or “the crane’s dwelling,”
perhaps implying symbolic associations of the crane with old age and long life. For the
emblem Tsurunoya Osamaru chose an abbreviated line-description of a nesting crane.
One can see this bird’s contour on the poet’s shoulder on the surimono under discussion.
Like members of many poetic groups, Tsurunoya was interested in surimono, an artform
that happened to be closely associated with witty poetry kyōka – numerous surimono
served for poetic exchange among the poetry group members.

Fig. G. Asaka no Katsumi. Portrait of Kyōka poet Tsurunoya as a Papier-mâché Doll of a Gidayū
Chanter. 1823. RISD. Gift of George Pierce Metcalf, 56.039.73. Outline of the nested crane – the
emblem of the Crane poetry group. The same line-figure of a nested crane reproduced on the right.

As we learn from the same article by Roger Keyes, Asaka no Katsumi who
portrayed the Tsurunoya Osamaru on this surimono was rather a poet than an artist.
Roger Keyes introduces him as a young man, a son of a prominent poet, himself a dealer
of antiques, a publisher, and an amateur artist.48 Asaka no Katsumi was a member of the
Crane Group and as such designed “the charmingly awkward surimono of an amateur
chanter,” citing the words by Roger Keyes. It has been already mentioned that the
awkwardness of the figure is explained by the deliberate modeling it on a folk-art papier-
mache doll. Roger Keyes concludes that this must be an affectionate portrait of the man
playing an enthusiastic amateur chanter.
Production of surimono is this artform’s very special aspect – it was an artistic
venture of great sophistication. Since surimono were privately commissioned and

48
Ibid., 129

56
produced, they welcomed usage of all kinds of luxurious materials and techniques along
with cleverness of the subject matter and artistic approaches. An extraordinarily gifted
producer of surimono associated with the Crane Group was Tani Seikō (active in early
19th century). Tani Seikō marked the prints he produced with an elegant small gourd-
shaped seal. The seal in the lower left corner of Asaka no Katsumi’s print is modeled on
Tani Seikō’s gourd, but it is framed with pine needles. This is because it is an imitation of
Tani Seiko’s seal done by his protégé, the poet Chiyo no Matsuhiko. “Matsu” of his name
means “pine,” hence the pine needles in the design of the seal. Additionally, he included
the characters of his name Matsuhiko inside the gourd shape. It was this very person,
Chiyo no Matsuhiko who cut the blocks for the figure and printed the image, using the
beautiful colors discussed in the beginning of this essay, also adding delicate shiny dust
either metallic or fine mica.

Fig. E. Signatures by the authors of three poems reproduced on the surimono.

Right: Asaka Katsumi (朝香勝躬), designer of the image/ author of the rightmost poem
Center: Chiyo Matsuhiko (千代松彦), a poet/ this print’s producer.
Left: Tsurunoya Osamaru (鶴廼屋乎佐丸), head of the Crane poetry group portrayed here/ author
of the leftmost poem.

The poems that appear in this surimono are by all three individuals involved in
print’s production as is seen from the signatures that accompany the texts. The rightmost
poem is by the designer of this image, Asaka no Katsumi. The poem in the middle is by
the craftsman who carved the blocks and printed them - by Chiyo no Matsuhiko. The

57
leftmost poem is by Tsurunoya Osamaru, the leader of the poetic group who is portrayed
here.
To conclude, this charming and exquisite print introduces us to the high poetic
and artistic urban culture of Edo period Japan. The distinctive culture of kyōka (cominc,
literally “crazy”) poetry found its remarkably developed manifestation in the art of
surimono, of which this one from the RISD collection is an outstanding example. Thanks
to the all-encompassing study by Roger Keyes, we could better appreciate the immense
artistic richness of ukiyo-e culture that brought together poetic practice, refined artistic
creativity, extraordinary technical skill in print production, and the music culture in the
reference to obviously much-appreciated art of a jōruri chanter.

Bibliography
Keyes, Roger. ‘This is What We Accomplished’: An Osaka Print Collector and His
Circle. In Amy Reigle Newland (Ed.). The Commercial and Cultural Climate of Japanese
Printmaking. Hotei Publishing. Amsterdam. 2004
Keyes, Roger S. “Andon 72-73”, “Tani Seiko and his Circle” by Roger S. Keyes,
pages 12-16, 2002
Japanese-Wiki-Corpus, Hari-ogi, www.japanese-wiki-corpus.org/culture/Hari-
ogi.html

58
59
Katsukawa Shunkō (1743-1812)
Actors Ichikawa Komazō II and Segawa Kikunojō III, by a stream – onstage, 1780s
RISD. Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 20.1111

60
 Music and Magic in Kabuki Theater:
Segawa Kikunojō III Dancing by a Stream, and Ichikawa Komazō III (?)
Alisa Boardman

There is something weird and intriguing about the scene that is happening
between two characters out in nature on a riverbank. One of the characters seems to be a
graceful and elegant woman caught in the middle of a dance movement. There are some
alerting features in her appearance – in her hairstyle, dress, and movements, to be
discussed later. The other person is a man seated on the ground next to her. The two
characters are exchanging glances quite intently. On a closer inspection it becomes clear
– for many reasons – that these characters are Kabuki theater actors performing a play on
stage. They are portrayed by an ukiyo-e artist, Katsukawa Shunko (1743-1812) who
specialized on images of the Kabuki theater actors. This artist belonged to the Katsukawa
School that dominated the actor print genre in the end of the 18th century, having
pioneered a new level of realism in rendering the characters and the setting of theatrical
scenes.
Let’s first look at the dancer that appears to be an elegant woman. The dancer’s
hair is fashionably styled as a high chignon and the wide sidelocks of the so-called
lantern-type known as tōrōbin. The character’s hairdo is decorated with fashionable
accessories, including a comb kushi, a pair of two-pronged hairpins kanzashi, and bar-
shaped hairpin kōgai. Two elements of the dancer’s hairstyle are unusual – a piece of
cloth covering the front part of the dancer’s head and the length of her hair trailing down
her back. Both are telling, one revealing the person to be an actor, the other shedding
some light on the role.
The piece of fabric on the character’s scalp is a unique object used by kabuki
theater actors only. Tradition to wear such headpieces is associated with the fact that
historically from the mid-17th century all kabuki theater actors were men. Thus, all female
roles were impersonated by male actors. They were known as onnagata – “woman-

61
person.”49 During the Edo period it was mandated by the government that men shaved
hair on top of their heads. To make female impersonators look more feminine there
developed a tradition to cover the actor’s shaved pate with a silk band of purple color.
Hence such pieces of cloth became known as murasaki-bōshi or “purple headgear,”
although later silk of various colors became used. According to the New Kabuki
Encyclopedia by Samuel Leiter, murasaki-bōshi “offered a touch of feminine gentleness
and sensuality”50 by softening the contrast between the face and stark black hair.
Presence of this headcloth immediately signaled who were kabuki actors and who were
courtesans when depicted in ukiyo-e.

Fig. A. Katsukawa Shunko, Segawa Kikunojō III, detail. Note the headgear murasaki-bōhi.

Another noteworthy aspect of the actor’s hairstyle is that the length of the hair is
not swept up into the bun completely but is left out. This hair is flowing down the
character’s back freely, animated by the dance step and hinting on the not entirely human
nature of the being.
The character’s costume likewise carries information on both, the personality of
the actor and the role. The layered garments are decorated in the most thoughtful and
refined manner. The outer kimono is worn by the dancer only from waist down. It is kept
in place by the wide obi sash, while the unused sleeves of that kimono are hanging down.
The fabric of this outer kimono is decorated with a combination of floral designs and
geometric maze-like patterns of interlocking swastikas, manji. This geometric pattern is
known known as sayagata and has roots in Buddhism. When combined with flowers,
sayagata pattern would be often accompanied by chrysanthemums, 51 which is the case
here.

49
Samuel Leiter. New Kabuki Encyclopedia. Greenwood Press. Westport, CT & London. 1979. P. 498
50
Ibid., p. 423
51
(C)2001 Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users: https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/s/sayagata.htm

62
Details. 1. Sayagata pattern in white above the chrysanthemum flowers kiku that allude the actor's
name Kukunojo. 2 Pattern of hōju, а wish-granting jewel associated with fox’s shapeshifting
abilities. 3 Skein of fibers - family crest of the Segawa Kikunojo lineage. 4 Three concentric
squares - family crest of Ichikawa lineage. 5 Chrysanthemums - perhaps reference to actor
Kikunojo. Stage setting is not an actual depiction of the natural world

Eight-petal chrysanthemum flowers with distinctive angular three-pointed leaves

are placed near the edges of the fabric towards the bottom. The same patterns continue on
the loosely hanging empty sleeve mentioned above. Additionally, the sleeve bears a sign
shaped as a black circle with a white bundle of cotton or silk floss tied across – the
pattern known as yuiwata (結綿). This is an extremely important element of the costume

since this is a family crest of Segawa Kikunojō, one of the most prominent lineages of
kabuki theater actors, particularly famous for their skill as onnagata. Thanks to this sign
and the date of the print’s publication it became possible to identify the actor depicted
here as an extremely talented Segawa Kikunojō III.
Back to the costume, the lavish obi sash is made of fabric decorated with the
traditional hexagon patterns. Within larger hexagons against the black background
depicted are orange chrysanthemum-like flowers. It should be emphasized that
chrysanthemums are used twice on the costume of the dancer – along the edges of the
outer kimono (accompanied with leaves) and on the obi (flat-petaled). In fact, behind the
figures there is the third representation of chrysanthemums in this composition: there is a
bush with “Korin-style” rounded chrysanthemums blooming profusely. One can imagine

63
that such proliferation of chrysanthemums here hints on the actor’s name Kikunojō where
“kiku” (菊) means “chrysanthemum.”

Meaningful also is the pattern on the upper part of the dancer’s kimono. This
pattern consists of scattered teardrop/round shapes representing a wish-granting jewel
hōju (宝珠). A symbol of Buddhist origin,52 in folklore this wish-granting jewel is

strongly associated with the fox spirit kitsune. The jewel is believed to be what allows the
kitsune to transform into different forms.53 The presence of the wish-granting jewel motif
on the actor’s costume suggests the role performed is that of the fox spirit. This agrees
with somewhat beast-like floating long hair of the character. Here also fit the unusual
stance and movements of the character. With both her hands held up and closed, almost
as if mimicking an animal’s paws, the figure appears poised in a foxlike pose almost as if
leaping in the air referencing fox yōkai – a supernatural being, and its magic.
Furthermore, the importance of dance is clearly revealed here as with the distinct kitsune-
te fox-hands motions and the energetically raised feet, representing the kitsune-ashi. They
are key in identifying the character's role in the play.
All the above discussed features suggest that Segawa Kikunojō III is playing here
the onnagata role of a kitsune fox spirit. Perhaps this is the role of Kojorō-gitsune
(female kitsune) as one can hypothesize on the basis of a similar print from the collection
of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston.54 Segawa Kikunojō III has been portrayed in this
role numerous times by many ukiyo-e artists, including Katsukawa Shunkō’s
contemporary and fellow-artist, Katsukawa Shun'ei (1762-1819). In his print the actor is
wearing the same kind of costume – the outer kimono decorated with chrysanthemums,
and circular motifs are visible at the top part of the garment.55
The second character sitting on the ground next to the dancer also boasts quite a
distinctive appearance. He has small eyes that are highlighted with light orange eyelines
slightly rising at the outer corners. New Kabuki Encyclopedia states that “makeup is one
of the vital ingredients contributing the kabuki’s reputation for gorgeous visual style.”56
The character’s eyebrows are turned upward, giving him a worried or scared expression.

52
JAANUS, (C)2001 Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users:
https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/hOri/houju.htm
53
Karen Smyers. The Fox and the Jewel. University of Hawaii Press, 1998.
54
For instance, print by Katsukawa Shunsho, MFA, https://collections.mfa.org/objects/320846/actor-segawa-
kikunojo-iii-as-fox-kojoro
55
Katsukawa Shun’ei, Art Institute of Chicago https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/32576/manifest.json
56
Samuel Leiter, New Kabuki Encyclopedia, 318

64
Particularly conspicuous is his really large nose to be further discussed below. The nose
and bushy sideburns emphasize that he is a male character. On top of his head, he is
wearing a tenugui (headwrap). His kimono of a sage green color is adorned with repeated
stylized representation of torii gates printed in orange with their curved roofs rendered in
black. These torii gates are implied to be set in nature and thus seem to be surrounded
with foliage. While the same sage green is used for the entire kimono background, the
impression of foliage is achieved by a specific printing technique of the disperse dye
printing. Over the kimono the character is wearing a loosely fitted sleeveless jacket haori
that features motifs of bouquets of flowers in circular frames. Although this person lacks
swords, his outfit may indicate he is a samurai or some high official.
As with Segawa Kikunojo III, the actor’s sleeve here bears his family crest. This
crest features three concentric squares that represent the so-called mimasu (三升) or the
“triple rice measure” – as if three nested boxes are seen from above. Mimasu is a well-
known crest of the illustrious Ichikawa lineage of Kabuki theater actors to which the
portrayed actor temporarily belonged. Inside the concentric squares one can see the kanji
taka (高), which means “tall,” but also “talented.” This together with most specific facial

features of the actor allows to suggest that he is Ichikawa Komazō III (1764-1838) –
although he is identified as Ichikawa Komazō II (1737-1802) – the question remains
open. The suggested identification of the actor as Ichikawa Komazō III (later Matsumoto
Kōshirō V) is based on this actor’s legendary big nose. In the words of Samuel Leiter,
“he was widely known as “High Nose” or “Hanataka Kōshirō” because of his most
prominent feature.”57 Leiter also mentions his small eyes “that gave him a fearful look
when opened wide,” helping him to dominate the field of villain acting. The actor’s huge
nose and small eyes are faithfully depicted here by the artist. The Katsukawa School of
ukiyo-e artists is particularly famous for capturing actors’ likeness, the approach
introduced by the founder of the lineage, Katsukawa Shunshō (1726-1793).
This new sense of realism referred primarily to rendering of the appearance of
actors, their movements, and gestures but was applied also to all other elements of
theatrical compositions, which is proven by every detail in the print discussed here.
Lifelike details distinguish representation of the landscape background although many
elements are simplified. The ripples of the rapid stream are rendered with minimal lines.
The chrysanthemums on the bush are abbreviated into round shapes as mentioned above.

57
Samuel Leiter, New Kabuki Encyclopedia. Pp. 390-391.

65
The magnolia tree that arches over the two figures is depicted in a rough textured
painterly style reminiscent of Chinese ink painting aesthetics. Below the tree is a greenish
mound of grassy earth or moss. Beneath the mound is the ground the characters are
placed upon – it looks to be some sort of sandy shore of a stream. These recognizable
features of the setting increase believability of the fantasy scene performed on stage.
Kabuki theater was of tremendous importance for the urban culture in Edo period
Japan providing entertainment for the general public. As a result, countless ukiyo-e prints
depicting aspects of the Kabuki theater were published. Images of actors proper
constitute a category known as yakusha-e or “actor images.”
The theater operated on a yearly cycle, starting in November, in which a
multitude of ukiyo-e posters and woodcuts advertising the upcoming actor casts and plays
were produced. It is not clear if this print is related to the so-called “kaomise” or “face-
showing performance” – the first performance given in the season that lasted from
November of one year through December of the following. Maybe this print just
represents a scene from a performance. Such prints could be bought by Edo public as a
memory of a theater visit or as a substitute of such. There are two major contrasting types
of plays performed in Kabuki theater. One of them is the sewamono usually translated as
“domestic plays.” Sewamono” relies on the contemporary events in the lives of chōnin, or
commoners from among the townspeople. The other type is known as jidaimono or
“period plays” and refers to history plays. Many of those historic plays referenced heroic
sagas with supernatural elements as here.
Invented relatively recently, around 1603, compared to other forms of traditional
Japanese theater, kabuki underwent many changes before it developed into a full-fledged
theatrical form. Kabuki actors came from long lineages of prestigious families, their
names being passed on from generation to generation to maintain their fame. The
Ichikawa lineage, to which the actor Ichikawa Komazo III (?) depicted here belonged,
was considered one of the most outstanding lineages in Edo. The Ichikawa family was
most well-known for inventing the aragoto kabuki style of acting that utilized dramatic
makeup, costumes, wigs, props, vocals, and movements to portray otherworldly powerful
samurai heroes. This flair for dramatic and supernatural themes is clearly prevalent in this
ukiyo-e print, with the actors wearing elaborate costumes, dramatic expressions, and the
allusions to supernatural entities such as, perhaps, kitsune (Japanese for foxes). These
supernatural characters helped enhance the heroic nature of the samurai, and thus further
dramatized and edified these characters and actors.

66
 As has been said, Segawa Kikunojo III was a prominent Kabuki actor who
played both male and female roles but was most well-known for female roles and the
henge mono, or “transformation pieces.” This is demonstrated in Katsukawa Shunkō’s
print in which Segawa Kikunojō plays a fox spirit transformed into a human woman. By
having the female character appear as a kitsune, it can depict some of the more subversive
female archetypes that are portrayed in kabuki as not being wholly human which allows
such female characters to break out of societal expectations.
To reiterate, the Katsukawa School of ukiyo-e theatrical print designers was most
active during the second half of the 18th century. They primarily focused on producing
yakusha-e and were most well known for their ability to capture the actor’s physical
likeness, as well as illustrating the daily lives of actors, outside of the theater. Some
actors had easily recognizable physical characteristics. For example, Ichikawa Komazō
III had a noticeably high nose, as can be seen in many ukiyo-e prints. These distinct
portraits of actors not only heightened the individual fame of the actors, but further
embedded their personalities within the minds of the people. Allowing people to
recognize these actors from their portraits emphasized their celebrity status within Edo
culture and inevitably strengthens their influence on the society and culture.
As represented in this print, the supernatural is a key element in the kabuki
theater and in ukiyo-e. Not only does it reveal the complexities inherent in the Japanese
culture and tradition, but it also truly informs the musical and visual characteristics of art.
The kitsune yōkai is an important entity within Japanese culture and represents many
ideas ranging from the spiritual realm to the practicing of transformation and trickery.
These ideas of transformation are critical, especially in the framework of the yakusha-e
and the context of kabuki.

While this print probably is directly referencing a play involving magic and fox
spirits, it also prompts us to look deeper. From the beautiful onnagata actor, captured in a
spirited dance and pose to the suggestive natural background despite the indoor theater
setting, to the elaborate facial expression of the male actor at the bottom of the scene, all
of these components suggest something beyond what is on the surface. There is
transformation and illusion that are being utilized to create this otherworldly beauty, and
entertainment that has ensnared the minds of the Edo people. Furthermore, this
transformative layered aspect of Japanese supernatural culture is also reflected through
the music. Through the dance and illusionary atmosphere, the transformative musical

67
nature of the Kabuki play is successfully conveyed and portrayed by this piece. In this
way the music itself becomes a supernatural and transformative force without having to
be physically heard by the print observers.

Bibliography
Leiter, Samuel. New Kabuki Encyclopedia. Greenwood Press. Westport, CT &
London. 1979.
Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users, © 2001.
https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/s/sayagata.htm
https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/hOri/houju.htm
1
Karen Smyers. The Fox and the Jewel. University of Hawaii Press, 1998.

68
 Part III.
MUSIC IN THE SUPERNATURAL REALM

69
Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849).
Random Sketches by Hokusai - Transmitting the Spirit, Revealing the Form of Things (Denshin
kaishu: Hokusai manga), volume 12.
RISD. Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 31.394.12

70
 Kindred Spirits?
A Monk’s Music Amusement for Yōkai, in Hokusai Manga, volume 12
Kevin Wu

A busy and bizarre composition is printed in black over off-white pages of a

book-spread with each side framed in a slightly thicker line frame. Within these frames
are numerous mysterious and mythical figures called yōkai represented by Katsushika
Hokusai, ukiyo-e preeminent artist, in his Random Sketches or The Hokusai Manga,
volume No. 12 The rightmost figure appears to be a young, good looking, and nicely
coiffured woman, lounging on her back. Her body begins at the very bottom of the page
while her head reaches to the very top of the page carried by an extremely long and thin
neck that swirls and loops like the smoke coming
from her tobacco pipe that she is smoking. She is a
rokurokubi (轆轤首), a kind of yōkai that looks like
normal humans by day, but at night they gain the
ability to stretch their necks to great lengths.58 The
face of this yōkai is very young and good-looking.
Her head is topped with a two-pronged hairpin
kanzashi, a comb kushi and a bar-shaped hairpin
kōgai keeping her bun up. Her inner rustled kimono,
featuring kasuri weaving patterns, is loosely tied
leaving parts of her body bare. The viewers see her
breast and portions of her shoulder and belly. She is
using her striped outer kimono as a throw. Her left
arm is outstretched, and her hand is visible. Right
next to the base of her neck one sees a hako-makura,
decorated with a floral pattern on lacquered black
background, a roll of padding and a parcel of tissue papers on top.

58
Jisho, English Japanese online dictionary, word “rokurokubi”:
https://jisho.org/word/%E3%82%8D%E3%81%8F%E3%82%8D%E9%A6%96

71
 Detail: Monk playing the shamisen while interacting with yōkai old woman.

Next to her is another rokurokubi representing the same species and boasting an
incredibly long neck that spans across both pages of the book spread. This figure appears
to be a much older disheveled woman. This body part of the character is unwinding
intertwined threads next to a low cylindrical toolbox with some fan-like patterns. Next to
this box there are a couple of single thread coils she has just completed. This rokurokubi
hag is visiting her neighbor playing shamisen making the best of her unusual anatomy.
She has three hands: two are involved in work and the third – in smoking. The wrinkles
follow along her neck. She too is seen smoking, with an incredibly lively and joyous
expression. Her hair is drawn with wild loose lines, accentuating the wild and tossed
together nature of her hair.

Detail: Yōkai old woman unwinding the intertwined threads

72
 Following the old woman’s neck, leads you to another figure – to that a man
playing a traditional Japanese instrument, the shamisen. The man is looking back at the
long-necked woman ghoul, and you can only see his profile. He has no hair, and the top
of his head has a somewhat conical shape. The man’s shaven head suggests the man is a
Buddhist monk. The figure also appears to be in mid-performance, with his left hand
pressing down on the strings of the shamisen and the right, strumming the strings with the
plectrum. The musician is leaning slightly back as he is peering at the hand of the long-
necked ghoul hovering over him. He is staring at her in a quite focused manner observing
the creature’s smoking pipe held by the hand. The soundbox of his shamisen is shaped
like a curved rectangle with convex edges. The neck of the shamisen is quite thin and
rests on his left bicep and in between his index finger and thumb of his left hand. There is
black, soft padding at the top of the soundbox for the comfort of the hand and to protect
the instrument.

Detail: huge three-eyed yōkai in spiderweb-patterned kimono at the optometrist.

Below the musician, in the center of the composition is an almost bald giant man,
with bushy hair behind the ears, bushy mustache and sideburns, and with three eyes. He
appears to be sitting cross legged in front of a basin with handlebars. Inside the basin are
perhaps burnt ashes. The basin may be a large incense burner. Compared to the other
figures, this figure has the most eccentric kimono motifs, being black with accents of
spiderwebs throughout it. Based on the patterns on his garments and considering his
facial expression he may be a reference to Tsuchigumo featured in the scroll of yōkai:

73
Bakemono no e,59 a spider-inspired yōkai with three eyes. This three-eyed giant is sitting
and interacting with the last figure in the composition, a man that appears to be holding
three-lensed glasses for a three eyed individual. In front of this man, is a box filled with
objects that resemble incense or folded up pieces of fabric or cases for eyewear.

Left: Tsuchigumo, literally “earth spider,” a type of yōkai. From book Bakemono no e, here – with
three eyes.60
Right: Katsushika, Hokusai, 1760-1849. Seller of eye-glasses – magana-ya. UCSF Japanese
Woodblock Print Collection61

While these figures are so colorful in personality, and fun to look at, these
exaggerations allow Hokusai to reveal and express ideas about Japanese life and culture
that otherwise would not have been possible. In this way, we feel that yōkai art and
stories give a glimpse into the internal psychologies and ideas of life that the Japanese
people of the time may have experienced, making them endlessly fascinating.
To recap, from the right, the rokurokubi young lady with the chignon-style hairdo
and its adornments - a two-pronged hairpin kanzashi, a simple slender implement kōgai,
and a comb kushi together with her being smoking attests to her being up to the latest
fashion. This outer kimono is made of striped fabric that was one of the Edo chic designs
associated with the concept of iki62 This striped pattern on her outer kimono further
characterizes this unusual being as being most up to date. With her exposed breast and
unkempt clothing indicates that she may be a courtesan or member of the pleasure
quarters.

59
Bakemono no e (化物之繪, "Illustrations of Supernatural Creatures"), Edo Period.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakemono_no_e#/media/File:35.Tsuchigumo.jpg
60
Ibid.
61
Megana-ya – seller of glasses. Print by Katsushika Hokusai. UC San Francisco, Special Collection:
https://oac.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/hb3p30074f/?layout=metadata&brand=woodblock
62
Rebecca Salter, Japanese Popular Prints: from Votive Slips to Playing Cards. University of Hawaii Press,
Honolulu. 2006. P. 30 Also, https://edostripe.com/edo-stripe

74
 Over to the left of the piece, is the man playing a shamisen. His bald head and
large earlobes suggest he may be a musical Buddhist monk. His thinly drawn, closed eyes
may also imply he is akin to a biwa hōshi, a blind traveling performer. Biwa hōshi were
believed to originate from China or India and became famous for storytelling and
entertainment. Besides being popular for narrating tales about the Genpei Wars, they also
were important entertainers and ritual performers who took on a broad range of roles,
including poetry and song, plague prevention, and spiritual purification. This character is
important to the overall mood of the piece because he is the one providing musical
entertainment to the other four characters. Such roles of reciting verbal histories made
them a cultural keystone of the time. The playing of shamisen music allows for the
leisurely attitude of the other characters and allows the other human-appearing character
in the piece to gleefully sell eyewear to the three-eyed yōkai. This interaction may be a
reference to Megana-ya (1811-1814), a piece also by Hokusai from his collection of
prints related to health.63 All the other characters pay no mind to the shamisen player
except the rokurokubi with three arms and unkempt hair. This old hag rokurokubi seems
really pleased by the music and smiles open mouthed showing off her set of black rotten
teeth. The shamisen player seems to be mid-pause and making direct eye contact with the
rokurokubi, suggesting they may have been having a conversation or were friends of
some sort.
All in all, this scene depicted by Hokusai is a scene of idyllic pleasures and a
peaceful meeting between the yōkai and humans or the intersection between the
supernatural world and the real world. Such social activities are made possible through
the leisurely effects of the shamisen music.

Bibliography

Bakemono no e (化物之繪, "Illustrations of Supernatural Creatures"), Edo

Period. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakemono_no_e#/media/File:35.Tsuchigumo.jpg
Jisho, English Japanese online dictionary
Salter, Rebecca. Japanese Popular Prints: from Votive Slips to Playing Cards.
University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu. 2006
UC San Francisco, Special Collection: Megana-ya – seller of glasses. By
Katsushika Hokusai.
https://oac.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/hb3p30074f/?layout=metadata&brand=woodblock

63
UCSF Japanese Woodblock Print Collection

75
Katsushika Taito II (葛飾戴斗), active 1810-1853. Designs for All Artisans (Banshoku
zukō) Volume 4. Osaka publishing house Kawachiya Mohei. 1827.
RISD. Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke 31.398.5

76
 Music of the Immortals:
Gama-sennin and the Lore of the Moon
Timothy Li

Music and art belong to crucial cultural identifiers of people throughout the
history of human civilizations. This analysis seeks to deeper evaluate features of an
ukiyo-e print to further understand the importance of music for characterization of an
immortal’s personality and trace aspects of interconnectedness of nature, lore, music, and
visual arts Edo Japan.

"Designs for All Artisans” (Banshoku zukō) is a collection of designs by

Katsushika Taito II (c.1810-1853), a pupil of Katsushika Hokusai (c.1760-1849). A total
of five of these books were produced by Katsushika Taito II, all named “Designs for All
Artisans” (c.1827-1850). The books were published by the Osaka publishing house
Kawachiya Mohei (河内屋茂兵). The books were designed in the late Edo era to serve as
an aesthetic and compositional guide for other artisans’ crafts. The double page-spread in
question comes from volume 4 of this book series.
The double-page spread of the book shows four larger circular insets containing
cultural and nature images while six more images are organized outside of these circular
insets. The large rectangular frames that surround all images on each page represent the
borders of the printing blocks used during this process. Overall, the print has two colors:
black and pink.64 The color pink can be seen primarily on the bodies of living beings on
both pages. Because these books were cheap, the colors in the print sometimes exhibit
uneven distribution as a result of poor-quality printing. Occasionally, some elements are
misaligned.
At first sight, the circular frames may seem randomly arranged. However, on
closer investigation, there is distinct logic and structure in their distribution. The position

64
There is another edition of the same book in which three colors are used, black, pink, and blue. See
Smithsonian Institution, https://pulverer.si.edu/node/781/title/4/6

77
of the stacked circular frames follows vertical symmetrical order in which the scale and
the location of the images mirror each other across the middle binding split of the two
pages. As to the smaller images, two of them are positioned also symmetrically at the
outer edges of both pages – at the very right and the very left, at the height of about one
third of the page from the bottom. Four other smaller images are centered across the split
between the two pages.

Katsushika Taito II, Designs for All Artisans, v. 4. Gama Sennin – Immortal with a Toad. Detail.

When looking at the print from right to left, top to bottom, following the general
direction of East Asian writing, the first image to notice is that of a mysterious person
playing a unique musical instrument. Next to this person is an inscription that identifies
him as Gama Sennin or “the immortal with the toad.” Gama Sennin originally was one of
many Chinese Daoist saints who were assimilated into Japanese culture. He is also
known as Ryū Kaisen (劉海蟾; in Chinese 蝦蟇仙人).65 In this frame, he is seen sitting
on a rock which seems to be next to the water. As an immortal, he is obviously of
indefinite age. But within this ukiyo-e design, he also looks quite robust: he is wearing
pants and a short-sleeved shirt that is completely open at the front, revealing his
enormous belly, a sign that his life is quite abundant. Gama Sennin appears to be content
while wearing a cat-like mustache on his broad face. His unkempt hair66 is also
remarkably long, covering his shoulders and running down his back.

65Wikipedia. “Liu Haichan,” March 1, 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liu_Haichan.

66Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art. “Gama Sennin (Chinese Hou Xiansheng) and His Three-
Legged Toad.” Accessed May 4, 2022. https://asia.si.edu/object/F1904.192/.

78
 Against his huge round belly, he holds a similarly round three-string instrument
akin to the shamisen. He plays it using a typical large ivory plectrum bachi to strum the
strings and comes across as absorbed in his own music. This is demonstrated by, once
again, his content facial expression and the position of his left leg that seemingly is
moving to the rhythm.
At the head of the immortal, a toad is present. As Gama Sennin’s usual
companion, the toad is also making a headstand. The toad appears to be comfortable
keeping up its balance and also seems to be relaxing at the sounds of Gama Sennin’s
music. Next to the immortal’s right elbow there is a woven straw basket that is maybe a
container for his scarce possessions.
In the early 8th century BCE, humanity’s collective desire to attain old age led to
the advancement of Taoism within the community of immortality seekers67. Since the
forms of nature appeared to charm Taoist believers, many of the immortals were
represented by their own forms of nature: the mountain spirits were attracted to the forms
of mountains, and the water spirits were attracted to the forms of water. Taoist Immortals
were also known to love leisurely activities such as playing music and never pursued any
profits. Music and nature were often depicted in harmony with one another as nature was
a strong influential factor to music. The figure of Gama Sennin, one of these immortals,
has rough edges; additionally, his hair bristles. These features show him closely linked to
the natural habitat of toads. The instrument he is playing represent his close relationship
with nature.
Gama Sennin had been believed to possess great magical knowledge in regard to
medicine.68 Always carrying a toad on him, he was thought to be able to change his
appearance into a younger person as well as take on the form of a toad as well. Gama
Sennin is said to have been capable of releasing his spirit from his body, and then fly with
his three-legged toad companion.69 Within Japanese culture, frogs have long meant a sign
of good fortune and fertility. As the word ‘frog’ directly can be interpreted as ‘return’ (か
える), many people throughout history within Japan have carried and gifted frog or toad
items to others in order to wish them safe return on long journeys70.

67
Silbergeld, Jerome. “Chinese Concepts of Old Age and Their Role in Chinese Painting, Painting Theory, and Criticism.”
JSTOR, 1987.
68
www.slatermuseum.org. “11. Gama Sennin.” https://www.slatermuseum.org/exhibitions/permanent-exhibitions/the-
plaster-cast-collection/online-cast-exhibition/p/~board/online-galleries/post/11-gama-sennin.
69
Greve, Gabi. “Gokuraku - Jigoku : Gama Sennin Toad.” https://gokurakuparadies.blogspot.com/2018/02/gama-sennin-
toad.html.
70
Mingei Arts. “Kaeru / Japanese Creation of Myth.” https://mingeiarts.com/blogs/celebration-of-mingei-journey-through-
japan/kaeru-japanese-creation-of-myth#:~:text=In%20Japan%2C%20the%20frog%2C%20(.

79
 The lower-right circular frame contains another unique and significant image: a
bird soaring in the sky. On the right side of the inset, the text (月にほととぎす(時鳥))
states that the image is of a cuculus poliocephalus (lesser cuckoo) in front of the moon.
The cuculus poliocephalus, also known as the hototogisu, has several symbolic meanings
in Japanese folklore, hence they often appear as a popular subject in Japanese literature,71
song, and woodblock prints. The cuckoo has long been associated with the coming of
summer months in Japan. However, in literature and media, it is also often associated
with the longing for the return of those who have died.72

Katsushika Taito II, Designs for All Artisans, v. 4. Lesser Cuckoo. Detail.

It seems relevant to think here about Chang’e, a Chinese moon goddess whose
loveliness has often been celebrated throughout poems and novels. Her story revolves
around her stealing the drug of immortality given to her consort, Hou Yi, by the gods.
Because of that she was seeking refuge on the moon. Chinese people now celebrate the
memory of Chang’e every year with mooncakes during the “Mid-Autumn Festival” and
many of them go outside in hopes to see a supposed outline of a toad on the surface of the
moon who, according to a legend, is now Chang’e.73 It is possible that the story of
Chang'e becoming a toad and the symbolism of the cuculus poliocephalus are both
intended to imply bonds between Gama Sennin and Chang'e. Katsushika Taito II placed

71 The Hyakunin Isshu. “Summer Is Back: Poem Number 81,” May 17, 2012.
https://100poets.wordpress.com/2012/05/17/summer-is-back-poem-number-81/.
72 Toshidama. “The Enigmatic Japanese Cuckoo.” Toshidama Japanese Prints. Toshidama Japanese Prints,.

https://toshidama.wordpress.com/2013/02/25/the-enigmatic-japanese-cuckoo/.
73 The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica. “Chang’e | Chinese Deity.” In Encyclopædia Britannica, February

21, 2012. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Change-Chinese-deity.

80
the bird and the moon beneath Gama Sennin in circular full moon-like insets to convey a
story of Gama Sennin celebrating Chang’e and his longing for her return. Perhaps this is
expressed through music he is playing Also, there could be a reference to the coming of a
new summer season close to the next mid-autumn festival.

Katsushika Taito II, Designs for All Artisans, v. 4. Small creatures and bell flowers. Detail.

The six smaller images scattered around the circular frames are predominantly
images of sea creatures. These sea creatures include: two snails, a cuttlefish, two shrimps;
there are also two Chinese bellflowers (platycodon). All of these creatures and objects are
labeled by the text next to them. These free-floating images are shown to further enrich
the surrounding visual and symbolic ecosystem within the framed pages. Chinese
bellflowers were considered to symbolize endless love and honesty74 while snails were
considered to represent tolerance and perseverance.75 The shrimp and cuttlefish bring
forth a sign of longevity and knowledgeable mystery.76
The text next to each of the frames and images is a clear indication of how these
documents were guides for other artisans. Each label was made specifically for the
clarification of the images. The aim of those inscriptions was to allow people to
understand what objects looked like through drawing without having to witness them

74
A to Z Flowers. “Platycodon (Balloon Flower; Chinese Bellflower; Japanese Bellflower).”
https://www.atozflowers.com/flower/platycodon/#:~:text=Platycodon%20is%20a%20symbol%20of.
75
Facts About Snails. “Snails in Human Culture,” https://factsaboutsnails.com/snails-in-human-
culture/#:~:text=In%20ancient%20Japanese%20times%2C%20snails.
76
Masumizu, Haruka. “Osechi Ryori: The Hidden Meanings behind Japanese New Year Food - Savvy
Tokyohttps://savvytokyo.com/osechi-ryori-hidden-meanings-behind-japanese-new-year-food/.

81
themselves. On the outside of the two large rectangular frames that contain all print
content, there is smaller labeling text imprinted on both the left and right outer margins of
the pages. This text is the book’s title and the page numbers. These labels are also clear
usage of signs as they function as guides to help customers navigate through the book.

The works created by Katsushika Taito II greatly resemble those by Hokusai.

Much of his style is so similar, that many named him “Dog Hokusai”77 for his willingness
to slavishly copy every style of Hokusai’s, even that of Hokusai’s signature. That being
said, as Hokusai’s apprentice, Katsushika Taito II has created many successful works
replicating Hokusai. These works confuse many historians even to this very day.
Katsushika Taito II’s original style, Hokusai’s style, had eventually influenced other
prints, paintings, and pottery images across the world, some including the renowned
Impressionists: Monet, Manet, Renoir, and Van Gogh78. Now, the world admires the
striking touch of nature, culture, and the style of expression that can be found in ukiyo-e
prints of Edo Japan. Katsushika Taito II prints enhanced the historical importance of
Katsushika Hokusai and helped to expand the cultural identity of modern-day Japan.
There is no doubt that music played a significant role in the tradition of Japan
and was in harmony with the common aesthetic of nature reflected in the prints. It
appears as though there is a deeper narrative displayed within Katsushika Taito II’s page-
spread: one that depicts the immortal Gama Sennin playing music in association with the
ancient Chinese moon goddess Chang’e. In addition, the narrative of the spread’s
composition was displayed rather intelligently and secretly behind the face of what
originally appeared to have just been simple representational prints.

77
Baten, Lea. Playthings and Pastimes in Japanese Prints. Tokyo: Shufunotomo ; New York, 1995. 44-45
78
Web Japan. “Katsushika Hokusai: An Influential Figure in Art around the World,” n.d. https://web-
japan.org/trends/11_fashion/fas201910_hokusai.html.

82
 Bibliography

A to Z Flowers. “Platycodon (Balloon Flower; Chinese Bellflower; Japanese

Bellflower).”
https://www.atozflowers.com/flower/platycodon/#:~:text=Platycodon%20is%20a%20symbol
%20of.
Baten, Lea. Playthings and Pastimes in Japanese Prints. Tokyo: Shufunotomo; New
York, 1995.
Encyclopædia Britannica, the Editors. “Chang’e, Chinese Deity.”.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/Change-Chinese-deity.
Facts about Snails. “Snails in Human Culture,” August 15, 2020.
https://factsaboutsnails.com/snails-in-human-
culture/#:~:text=In%20ancient%20Japanese%20times%2C%20snails.
Greve, Gabi. “Gokuraku - Jigoku : Gama Sennin Toad.” Gokuraku - Jigoku,
February 25, 2018. https://gokurakuparadies.blogspot.com/2018/02/gama-sennin-toad.html.
Masumizu, Haruka. “Osechi Ryori: The Hidden Meanings behind Japanese New
Year Food - Savvy Tokyo.” Savvy Tokyo, December 26, 2016.
https://savvytokyo.com/osechi-ryori-hidden-meanings-behind-japanese-new-year-food/.
Mingei Arts. “Kaeru / Japanese Creation of Myth.”
https://mingeiarts.com/blogs/celebration-of-mingei-journey-through-japan/kaeru-japanese-
creation-of-myth#:~:text=In%20Japan%2C%20the%20frog%2C%20(.
Silbergeld, Jerome. “Chinese Concepts of Old Age and Their Role in Chinese
Painting, Painting Theory, and Criticism.” JSTOR, 1987.
Slater Museum, Norwich, CT: www.slatermuseum.org. “11. Gama Sennin.”
Accessed May 4, 2022. https://www.slatermuseum.org/exhibitions/permanent-
exhibitions/the-plaster-cast-collection/online-cast-exhibition/p/~board/online-
galleries/post/11-gama-sennin.
Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art. “Gama Sennin (Chinese Hou
Xiansheng) and His Three-Legged Toad.” https://asia.si.edu/object/F1904.192/.
The Hyakunin Isshu. “Summer Is Back: Poem Number 81,”
https://100poets.wordpress.com/2012/05/17/summer-is-back-poem-number-81/.
Toshidama website. “The Enigmatic Japanese Cuckoo.” Toshidama Japanese
Prints,.https://toshidama.wordpress.com/2013/02/25/the-enigmatic-japanese-cuckoo/.
“The Role of Bamboo in Japanese Culture.” ThoughtCo.
Web Japan. “Katsushika Hokusai: An Influential Figure in Art around the World,”
n.d. https://web-japan.org/trends/11_fashion/fas201910_hokusai.html.
Wikipedia. “Liu Haichan,” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liu_Haichan.

Other Sources

Smith, Judith G, and Maxwell K Hearn, eds. Arts of the Sung and Yüan: Papers
Prepared for an International Symposium Organized by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in
Conjunction with the Exhibition Splendors of Imperial China: Treasures from the National
Palace Museum, Taipei. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1996.
Vegder, Jerry. “Frogs and Toads in East Asian Art, but Mainly Those in Japan.”
Vegder’s Blog (blog), October 19, 2018. https://printsofjapan.wordpress.com/?s=toad.
Smithsonian Institution: pulverer.si.edu. “Banshoku Zukō | F|S Pulverer Collection.”
Accessed May 5, 2022. https://pulverer.si.edu/node/781/title/4/6.
British Museum. www.britishmuseum.org. “Collections Online | British Museum.”
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/term/BIOG11856.
Kikkawa Eishi, “The Musical Sense of the Japanese.” Contemporary Music Review
1, no. 2 (January 1987): 85–94. https://doi.org/10.1080/07494468400640271.

83
84
 Part IV.
MUSIC IN JAPANESE MYTHS,
CEREMONIES, & HISTORY

85
Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849).
Random Sketches by Hokusai - Transmitting the Spirit, Revealing the Form of Things
(Denshin kaishu: Hokusai manga). Volume. 5. Sarudahiko and Ame no Uzume.
RISD, Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 31.394.5

86
 Music in Shinto Beliefs: Sarudahiko and Ame no Uzume
in Hokusai Manga, Volume 5
Monet Fukawa, Rose Kim

Two intriguing full-length figures of very particular appearance and holding

highly specific attributes are shown against the blank background of a double-leaf book
spread. Moving right to left according to the traditional order of reading in Japan, we see
a tall man of mature age. With a long nose and piercing eyes, mustache, and long hair, he
is standing on high wooden clogs slightly bending forward. He is holding up an object
consisting of a stick with pieces of folded paper attached to it – this is a gohei used in
many Shinto rituals. In the upper part of the page to the right of the figure an inscription
says that the person is Sarudahiko Okami or god Sarudahiko.79 Sarudahiko is slightly
bending towards a plumpish woman who is shown at the left-hand spread of the print.
The inscription next to her identifies her as Ame no Uzume no Mikoto, or goddess Ame
no Uzume. She is pushing her torso forward so that her head as well as her trailing
garments are somewhat behind making her arc-shaped stance. The arc of her posture
matches that of Sarudahiko uniting the figures almost as two halves of a circle. Thus, the
composition of this book-spread reveals the inherent connection between these two
divinities that will be discussed further.

Hokusai’s print, ‘Sarudahiko and Ame no Uzume’ illustrates the theme of

Japanese traditional myths through visual qualities and storytelling. The book’s spread
depicts two notable figures of the Shinto religion who play significant roles in Japanese

79Hokusai indicates that the name of the male deity is to be pronounced as voiced “Sarudahiko” while
usually it is pronounced as voiceless “Sarutahiko.” In this essay Hokusai’s spelling will be used.

87
mythology. Hokusai suggests their opposing yet playful dynamic and character by
emphasizing the gestures and the poses of the deities. Although they are both facing each
other, Ame no Uzume appears as though she is leaning backward or in the midst of
turning around while Sarudahiko is bending towards her and has his full gaze on Uzume.
Sarudahiko is attempting to fulfill his duty of leading the way, but Ame no Uzume seems
quite open and free. Uzume’s gestures also feel looser, and performative compared to
Sarudahiko’s firm movements. Through portraying Sarudahiko as a guardian, Hokusai
addresses him as a symbol of courage and justice as well as referencing his role as the
leader of the earthly Kami. On the other hand, Uzume is illustrated with more
spontaneous movements to acknowledge her as the inventor of performance and the
Goddess of Dawn.
Sarudahiko, the god of crossroads, the guardian deity of the border, or the god of
michibiki (god of directions) is depicted on the right side of the spread. He symbolizes
guidance and strength as his role is to guide routes for gods while keeping them safe.80 It
is reasonable that he is the one who opens the composition. Sarudahiko often appears in
traditional texts on history and mythology such as in The Nihon Shoki, “The Chronicles
of Japan.” The Nihon Shoki contains a compilation of myths and legends concerning the
Shinto gods and the reigns of the early emperors. In the story, he goes to pick up Ninigi
No Mikoto (天孫ニニギ尊), the divine grandson of the sun goddess Amaterasu, from
Tamagahara at Ama no Yachimata. Ninigi was sent to go to the Land of the Central Reed
Plains by the orders of Amaterasu. However, Ninigi no Mikoto is suspicious of
Sarudahiko’s strange appearance. Ame no Uzume, goddess who danced to entice the sun
goddess Amaterasu from the cave where she secluded herself, is accompanying Ninigi
and is ordered to question Sarudahiko’s identity. When Ame no Uzume asks for his
name, Sarudahiko responds with “it’s the Kunizu God who came to guide the heavenly
grandson.” After this exchange of utterances, he was allowed to take the lead, and it is
said that he led Ninigi no Mikoto and his party to Takachiho in Hinata. From that story,
he became known as one of the gods. After Ninigi's journey, Sarudahiko and Ame-no-
Uzume married. In the selected print, Sarudahiko looks like a man with some features of
a monkey and a long-nosed tengu, a supernatural creature found in Japanese folk religion.
Sarudahiko has a “back extending seven fathoms, a nose the size of seven hand lengths

80
Matsumae Takeshi. “Origin and Growth of the Worship of Amaterasu.” Asian Folklore Studies 37, no. 1
(1978): 1–11. https://doi.org/10.2307/1177580.

88
(120cm), a colossal mouth, and eyes glowing like fire”81 with a height of 200 cm. He is
holding upwards a gohei wand with attached papers to possibly guide the way and point
directions for Ame no Uzume. His gohei is raised so high that it breaks the frame of the
image on the page underscoring his legendary big size mentioned above. He is also
wearing a geta, traditional wooden clogs with particularly high teeth that give him more
height. Sarudahiko is facing forward while the position of his feet is angled like a ‘v.’ His
eyes are focused on Ame no Uzume, and according to legend, light shines from his eyes
and mouth. Sarudahiko’s long nose represents a distinctive feature of a tengu, which is
thought to frighten bad spirits and bring good luck.82

Sarudahiko and his attributes.

Sarudahiko is wearing a patterned kimono and another layer of white clothing on

top of his kimono. The sleeves of his kimono are rolled up leaving his arms visible up to
the elbows. The kimono appears pulled up so that his legs are bare almost to the knees.
There is a certain sagginess of his muscles, attesting to him not being youthful. The

81
Joseph Zieher. “Ame-No-Uzume No Mikoto.” Shimbutsudo: A web page for the study of Japanese
religions, November 16, 2008.
https://web.archive.org/web/20120716205457/http:/www.uwec.edu/philrel/shimbutsudo/uzume.html.
82
Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. "tengu." Encyclopedia Britannica, August 4, 2017.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/tengu.

89
pattern on his kimono formed by three joined hexagonal shapes is called bishamon kikkō
(毘沙門亀甲).83 Interestingly, the name for this design decorating a Shinto deity has a
Buddhist origin: it was named after one of the Four Guardian gods (shitennō 四天王) of
Buddhism, Bishamonten (毘沙門天). Bishamonten typically wore armor decorated with
the repeated pattern of three hexagons that form a Y-shape. The white clothing looks like
it was made of separate square fragments of fabric sewn together. These square fragments
of fabric are described by a jagged line. Sarudahiko’s hair is also worthy of attention. The
crown of his head is free of hair which looks like receding of the hairline due to his
advanced age but maybe is shaved. The hair growing at the sides and the back of his head
is long, falling over his shoulders and his back. It goes down in patches and is rendered
by hatching. There is difference in line quality of his hair compared to Ame no Uzume’s
solid black hair at the other side of the book’s spread. Sarudahiko’s hair seems lighter
which perhaps implies that his hair is gray.
Although in this print, Sarudahiko’s height appears similar to that of Ame no
Uzume, in other prints portraying these characters, Sarudahiko’s largeness and
muscularity seem distinctive features of him, so they are highlighted with color.
Furthermore, his armor varies amongst the prints that treat this topic. In Hokusai’s toy
print “Dance of the Gods at the Heavenly Cave,” Sarudahiko is holding a large tree with
many strips of paper hanging from the leaves.

Hokusai’s toy print “Dance of the Gods at the Heavenly Cave,” MFA 84

83
Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. “Kikkoumon.” 渥美財団. Accessed May 5, 2022.
https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/k/kikkoumon.htm.
84
MFA, https://collections.mfa.org/objects/212826 https://collections.mfa.org/objects/212825

90
 While in Totoya Hokkei’s five-part surimono series “The Cave Door of Spring”
(Haru no iwato),” print No. 2 shows Sarudahiko holding a front and back spiked spear
with a peculiar decoration that looks like leaves. He also looks more aggressive and in
action. There is also a depiction of a rooster that has not appeared in other prints but is a
part of the myth of luring Amaterasu from her cave as his crowing signaled the beginning
of the day in spite of her absence.

Totoya Hokkei, Sarudahiko, from a set of five surimono The Cave Door of Spring. 1820s. MFA. 85

One of the common aspects of all the prints is that Sarudahiko tends to be
bending forward, to have his heels joined, and to be wearing the triangular-shaped pattern
on the kimono. Every feature of this Hokusai’s image of Sarudahiko emphasizes his
significant characteristics: his unique and recognizable face and body, his garments and
footwear, his gohei attribute, his particular stance, and very particular linework. All this
comes together to portray Sarudahiko’s role and power.
On the left side of the page spread, there is a voluptuous young woman wearing
multiple layers of loose traditional clothing that flow down to capture the fluent

85
No. 2 Sarutahiko, from the series The Cave Door of Spring (Haru no iwato) 「春磐戸 其二」1820s
Totoya Hokkei (1780–1850): SIGNED: Hokkei 北渓. Surimono. Shikishiban; 21.3 x 18.4 cm.
CREDIT LINE: William Sturgis Bigelow Collection: ACCESSION NUMBER: 11.19809
INSCRIPTIONS: Poem by Saiseitei Nanao: Hanamushiro/ mazu shikishima no/ michi hiraki/ isamashiki ka
ya/ ume no shitakaze.// Poem by Sekigentei Namio: Chihayaburu/ kamiyo o ima mo/ monogatari/ tari fusoku
naki/ tori no ganjitsu 花＿ まつしきしまの みちひらき いさましき香や 梅の下風 祭星亭七
雄 千早振 神代を今も 物かたり たりふそくなき 鳥の元日 石原亭濤雄
MFA, https://collections.mfa.org/objects/212437

91
movements of the woman. She is depicted like an Okame (おかめ) due to her
characteristic face with broad teardrop-shaped cheeks. She also has applied a makeup
technique called hikimayu (引眉) that consists of using ink to draw the oval-shaped
brows after shaving or pulling out her natural eyebrows. Initially, hikimayu was adopted
for coming-of-age ceremonies during the mid-Heian period. It later became incorporated
into Noh masks and from the Edo period. Most married women applied hikimayu. Ame
no Uzume's hikimayu could possibly indicate her marital status to Sarudahiko Ōkami, the
figure depicted on the right page.

Hikimayu - drawn oval-shaped brows after shaving or pulling out the natural ones.

Ame no Uzume is wearing at least three layers of garments that can be counted at
the collar opening. Her outer kimono is lavish and is trailing beyond her feet. The sleeves
of her outer kimono are long and fluid with shorter sleeves visible above. She is wearing
a sash with an elegant bow tied over it. Over her kimono she is wearing another light
clothing, sleeveless, somewhat ragged, and densely patterned. The design combines
herringbone hatching and flower- or butterfly-filled roundels. In color distribution she is
a reverse match to Sarudahiko: he is wearing a white robe over his patterned garments
while Ame no Uzume is wearing a patterned robe over her un-patterned kimono. Her hair
is lustrous black, long, and thick and is contrasted to grayish and thinnish hair of
Sarudahiko. Her waist is slightly pushed forward while her head is leaning towards the
back and her torso is twisting as she turns to look at Sarudahiko towards the left. She is
holding an implement in each of her hands. In her right hand she is holding suzu—a
Japanese traditional bell tree used in Shinto ceremonies. The bells comprising such bell
trees are said to be hollow containing pellets that produce sounds when moved.
Furthermore, Ame no Uzume is closely connected to the dances and music in Shinto

92
ceremonies such as kagura (“神楽”), which translates to “entertainment for the kami.”86
It is a type of dance dedicated to deities. In Japanese mythology, Ame no Uzume
performs this dance to welcome and worship the gods. Music in kagura involves drums,
flutes, cymbals and kami songs, and there are two distinct types of dancing. Mai (“舞”)
emphasizes slow circular movements while the other dance, the odori (“踊”) is a dance of
jumping. Mai is closely related to the Miko (“巫女”) dance performed by shrine maidens.
Ame no Uzume’s performance is known as the origin of the kagura and the role of miko.
As a result, her influence on music-and-dance Shinto ceremonies is essential.
Ame no Uzume’s graceful movement as it appears on Hokusai’s print perhaps is
defined by the rhythm of the suzu bell tree. She is pointing her suzu to the right and up, as
if she is about to strike it down to create music. Her gohei—a wooden wand with two
sides of zig-zag strips of paper used to bless or purify a person or object in Shinto
ritual—is resting on her left shoulder. This is the side she is somewhat turning towards.
As written on the right corner of the page is “天臼女の命,” which means “The Life of a
Heavenly Woman,” or the goddess depicted in the print, Ame no Uzume no Mikoto.
Often shortened to Uzume, the meaning of the word Ame can be rendered as light. She is
a kami, a Shinto divinity, the goddess of dawn serving Amaterasu. In the Tale of the
Missing Sun Deity from the Kojiki, Japan’s most ancient chronicle, Ame no Uzume
performs her first kagura dance when Amaterasu, the goddess of the sun, hid herself in
the rock-cave.87 The well-known Shinto story begins after Amaterasu becomes upset with
her aggressive brother, Susanoo, the storm god, causing the world to go into darkness.
Susanoo destroys the rice fields, throws a peeled off horse on Amaterasu’s loom, and
kills one of her maids due to an argument. While the other gods try to trick Amaterasu
into coming out, Uzume, one of Amaterasu’s trusted servants, stamped on a wooden tub
and exposed her breasts and pushed down her skirt.88 As the other gods laughed and
applauded, Amaterasu heard the sound of Uzume also singing and dancing. She finally
steps out of the cave, and the other gods quickly lead her out while closing the door. The
world becomes bright again. From this myth, Ame no Uzume became known for
inventing performances through humor and exposing herself in vulnerable ways. She also

86
Averbuch, Irit. “Shamanic Dance in Japan: The Choreography of Possession in Kagura Performance.”
Asian Folklore Studies 57, no. 2 (1998): 293–329. https://doi.org/10.2307/1178756.
87
Sadler, A. W. “‘O-Kagura’. Field Notes on the Festival Drama in Modern Tokyo.” Asian Folklore Studies
29 (1970): 275–300. https://doi.org/10.2307/1177614.
88
Malm, Joyce Rutherford. “The Legacy to Nihon Buyō.” Dance Research Journal 9, no. 2 (1977): 12–24.
https://doi.org/10.2307/1478063.

93
served as patron of dancing, theater, and music. Ame no Uzume created kagura,
storytelling dance, and two theaters: kyōgen and Noh. She is also considered a master of
humor, and her skills of ingenuity brought back Amaterasu. She often uses humor to
solve challenging situations. In some stories, she is described as wearing loose or
revealing clothing to portray her open and joyful character, while other kami find this
quality of Uzume comical.89 She is also associated with both dance and drumming, as her
feet drummed to create a rhythm for her dance.

As has been mentioned, these two images - one of Sarudahiko and the other of
Ame no Uzume, independent yet cleverly unified in one composition, were designed by
Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849), a Japanese artist, ukiyo-e painter, and print designer of
the Edo period. These images come from the fifth volume of a fifteen-volume collection
of random sketches known as the Hokusai Manga. Most manga today are associated with
graphic novels of various genres that contain quick and dramatic storytelling, similar to a
comic-book format. However, the word manga itself is composed of two characters, man
(漫) meaning “whimsical” and ga (画) meaning “pictures.” Katsushika Hokusai became
well known as the father of manga. The idea of whimsical pictures was the 19th-century
understanding of manga as Hokusai valued drawing in freely associative matters, as ideas
came to his head. A lot of his sketches were sources of information and drawing
references for his students. The above-mentioned surimono by Totoya Hokkei, who was
Hokusai’s student, shows how Hokusai’s design informed the work of his followers. The
idea for a manga volume arose in 1812 when Hokusai visited Nagoya during a trip to
western Japan. His pupils collected a variety of his drawings and published the first

89
Kárpáti, János. “Music of Female Shamans in Japan.” Studia Musicologica 54, no. 3 (2013): 225–56.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/43290138.

94
volume as a drawing manual in 1814. Additional fourteen books were printed until 1878.
Although there was no particular order or system to his drawings, the variety of topics
illustrated by Hokusai is astounding, and it is only natural that a lot of Hokusai’s manga
pictures feature music played in nature, occasionally in association with religion and
rituals, and folktales.
The exhibition also includes an image that can be in various ways associated with
Ame no Uzume as an elated mythological character - a creator of an ecstatic dance that
laid foundation to sacred musical ceremonies at Shinto shrines.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Grapard, Allan G. “Of Emperors and Foxy Ladies,” Buddhist Priests, Kings and
Marginals:Studies on Medieval Japanese Buddhism (2002-2003).
Averbuch, Irit. “Shamanic Dance in Japan: The Choreography of Possession in Kagura
Performance.” Asian Folklore Studies 57, no. 2 (1998): 293–329. https://doi.org/10.2307/1178756.
Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopedia. "tengu." Encyclopedia Britannica, August 4, 2017.
https://www.britannica.com/topic/tengu.
Hardacre, Helen. “Shirabyoshi (literally, White rhythm).” n.d. Japanese Wiki Corpus.
https://www.japanese-wiki-corpus.org/culture/shirabyoshi%20(literally,%20White%20rhyhm).html.
Clark, Timothy, ed. Hokusai: Beyond the Great Wave. United Kingdom: Thames & Hudson
in collaboration with the British Museum, 2017
Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. “Kikkoumon.” 渥美財団.
https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/k/kikkoumon.htm.
John Fiorillo. Viewing Japanese Prints, Website.
https://www.viewingjapaneseprints.net/texts/topics_faq/surimono_poems.html
Kárpáti, János. “Music of Female Shamans in Japan.” Studia Musicologica 54, no. 3
(2013): 225–56. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43290138.
Malm, Joyce Rutherford. “The Legacy to Nihon Buyō.” Dance Research Journal 9, no. 2
(1977): 12–24. https://doi.org/10.2307/1478063.
RISD Publication. Surimono from Osaka and Edo: The Pumpelly Album, the RISD
Museum surimono exhibition of 2008. https://risdmuseum.org/exhibitions-
events/exhibitions/surimono-osaka-and-edo
Keyes, Roger S. “Tani Seikō and his circle,” Andon 72/73, 2002: 12
Sadler, A. W. “‘O-Kagura’. Field Notes on the Festival Drama in Modern Tokyo.” Asian
Folklore Studies 29 (1970): 275–300. https://doi.org/10.2307/1177614.
Thompson, Sarah E. Hokusai. MFA Publications. Museum of Fine Arts. Boston, 2015
Seigle, Cecilia Segawa. Yoshiwara: The Glittering World of the Japanese Courtesan.
Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1993.
Shūgō, Asano, and Timothy T. Clark. “An Overview of Surimono.” Impressions, no. 20
(1998): 16–37. http://www.jstor.org/stable/42598038.
Takeshi, Matsumae. “Origin and Growth of the Worship of Amaterasu.” Asian Folklore
Studies 37, no. 1 (1978): 1–11. https://doi.org/10.2307/1177580.
Zieher, Joseph. “Ame-No-Uzume No Mikoto.” Shimbutsudo: A web page for the study of
Japanese religions, November 16, 2008.
https://web.archive.org/web/20120716205457/http:/www.uwec.edu/philrel/shimbutsudo/uzume.html

95
Yanagawa Shigenobu (1787-1832). Shirabyoshi Dancer. Surimono. 1823/1
Carved and printed by Tani Seikō (谷清好, seal in gourd shape).
RISD. Gift of George Pierce Metcalf, 56.039.1

96
 Music in Shinto Ceremonies: Shirabyoshi Dancer
in surimono by Yanagawa Shigenobu
Junyi Cao

Against the paper-color background of an almost square print, an elegant dancer

dressed as a courtier is making a graceful move. The dancer is wearing a tall black hat
tied with tan color chords under the chin. Patterns of flowers and geometric shapes adorn
the dancer’s outer kimono donned over the left shoulder of the main garment of white
color. A long slightly curved sword is attached at the dancer's waist on the left. A
ceremonial wand gohei that consists of a stick with paper streamers affixed to it is rising
above the dancer's shoulder. A folding fan in the dancer's right hand is almost fully open.
Although this type of headgear and the attire, as well as the presence of the
sword, may seem to indicate the dancer is a male, in fact all these attributes together
show that this is a female dancer of a very special type – this is a shirabyōshi, or a
woman performing a ritual dance in the guise of a man.
The shirabyōshi dance performed by shrine maidens developed between the late
Heian (794-1185) and Kamakura (1185-1333) periods. The origin of this performance
might be associated with the significance attached in Japanese mythology to Ame no
Uzume’s entranced dance that helped return the sun goddess, Amaterasu no Omikami,
out of the cave she had hidden. Shrine maidens are said to have granted Ame no Uzume a
large place – sometimes an ancestral role.90
It is interesting to compare the stance of the shirabyōshi on the surimono to the
Ame no Uzume’s posture in the Hokusai Manga doubleleaf, v. 9, where she is juxtaposed
with her husband Sarudahiko. Remarkably, the curvature of Ame no Uzume’s bend in
Hokusai’s design almost coincides with the curvature created by the leaning of the
shirabyōshi dancer. This is true about the position of the dancers’ heads, the flow of their
hair that is parting slightly to let the ear be visible, the tilt of their gohei wands that

90
Allan G. Grapard, “Of Emperors and Foxy Ladies,” Buddhist Priests, Kings and Marginals: Studies on
Medieval Japanese Buddhism (2002-2003): 128

97
parallel the angle of the of their bent heads, the curves of the abundant fabric of their
dresses that elongates both figures on their left.

The bend of the figure of Yanagawa Shigenobu’s shirabyōshi dancer (left) is similar to that of
Ame no Uzume in Hokusai Manga, Volume 5 (right).

Let’s now return to the matter of shirabyōshi dancers wearing male-oriented

outfits as this is depicted on the surimono. It would be useful to review what such outfits
commonly consisted of. Shirabyōshi performers wore a tate-eboshi cap which is a kind of
black-lacquered tall court cap used during the Heian period (8 th – 12th cc). Tate-eboshi
cap was previously only worn by men of a particular social status. Later they began to be
worn in certain Shinto ceremonies. As to the attire, traditionally, the shirabyōshi dancers
wore white suikan, a garment made of simple fabric stretched without starch. Together
with a suikan, a shirabyōshi would usually wear red hakama which is a name for broad
skirt-like trousers, although the shirabyōshi depicted here is dressed differently.
Typically, a shirabyōshi dance is performed with a sword hung at the waist. It is
said that usually the swords were in white sheaths although this is not the case here. In
the surimono in question, the sheath seems to be made of red lacquer with a deeply
carved spiral-type pattern of the karakusa or the Chinese grass type. During the dance,
the shirabyōshi performers are holding a gohei that has been mentioned above. Gohei,
also known as an onbe or heisoku, is a wooden wand with two zigzagging paper
streamers on either side. A gohei wand is a hand-held sign of gods used in many Shinto
ceremonies. They are held by shrine maidens performing as shirabyōshi dancers and act
as the torimono or the “hand-held symbols” representing the gods. Both the sword and

98
the gohei belong to such torimono.91 There exists an opinion that the tradition of shrine
performances in which women dress as males could be rooted in old shamanistic
practices. In the history of shirabyōshi offered in the WikiCorpus article, it is said that
when people who sing and dance to summon the gods (they are called kannagi or
kannabi 巫) get possessed by the god, their genders are briefly switched.92
The name of the performance is explained as a blend of "imayo-uta" (a modern
and easy song) and "so-byōshi" (simple rhythm). Gradually these musical terms became
synonymous with the name of performers. Women and children, regardless of gender,
were the ones who performed it the most. In the Kamakura period, shirabyōshi gradually
became “an important class of courtesans as they were supported by the upper class,
underwent professional training, and developed into excellent, cultured shirabyōshi
performers.”93 Female dancers and students were well trained in school and became
professional performers. Through school, they were connected to the imperial court, and
in that case they held rather a high social standings.
Historically, shirabyōshi dances will be performed on Sumiyoshi Grand Shrine
Festivals on January 4. A more complete series took place on April 3 saluting the
consecration of pine trees. The performance included a solo dance and 2-4-8 female
dancers. The music was provided by a small instrumental group and one or two male
singers. It was different from how the shirabyōshi dances were performed in Kasuga
Taisha temple in Nara, Japan, where the instrumental group played a flute (fue), a zither
(wagon), a drum (kotsuzumi), and clappers (shakubyōshi). In Sumiyoshi Taisha, however,
only a solo flute accompanied the singer. Specifically, in shirabyōshi, it was
accompanied by the singing of waka, a 31-syllable Japanese poem.
The print depicting the shirabyōshi dancer here is of a specific type. This is a
surimono.
Surimono were prints produced on individual commissions to be presented as
private gifts. In this, surimono were different from commercially published and marketed
prints. Surimono were limited editions and were not placed on public sale.94 Being

91
János Kárpáti, “Music of Female Shamans in Japan,” Studia Musicologica , Vol. 54, No. 3 (September
2013): 235, 245.
92
WikiCorpus. © A. C. Yu https://www.japanese-wiki-
corpus.org/culture/shirabyoshi%20(literally,%20White%20rhythm).html
93
Hardacre, Helen. “Shirabyoshi (literally, White rhythm).” n.d. Japanese Wiki Corpus. Accessed May 5,
2022. https://www.japanese-wiki-corpus.org/culture/shirabyoshi%20(literally,%20White%20rhyhm).html.
94
John Fiorillo. Viewing Japanese Prints, Website.
https://www.viewingjapaneseprints.net/texts/topics_faq/surimono_poems.html

99
privately commissioned, they differed from their commercial counterparts by their
specific subject matter closely connected to the personalities or circumstances of such
prints’ production. Surimono was frequently published as announcements,
commemorations, or, most commonly, new year's greetings. Surimono had their own
formats with a small squarish form known as shikishiban predominating. All three
examples of surimono at the current exhibition are of this shikishiban format. Surimono
decidedly stood out for the refinement of their production. They were printed on a thicker
and softer paper with extraordinary attention to detail in just everything. This referred to
the perfection in carving and printing and the usage of the most luxurious pigments. Parts
of the image could be printed with different saturation of pigments, “blind” relief printing
karazuri (空摺), application of metallic dusts, etc. Very often surimono were inscribed by
poems since prints of this type often were commissioned by poetic groups most popular
in Japan during the Edo period.
It is because of their association with poetry groups that surimono particularly
often incorporate inscriptions of one or more poems.95 The surimono discussed here is an
example of a poetic group commission. The nesting crane on the upright corner is a
symbol for the Crane Poetry Group (Tsuru-gawa). One of the leaders of this group was
Tsurunoya Osamaru (ca. 1751 – ca. 1839). The last poem on this surimono, the one at the
left edge of the print, is signed by Tsurunoya.

The nesting crane symbol of the Crane Poetry Group. Left: Shirabyōshi dancer, by Yanagawa Yoshinobu.
Right: Portrait of Tsurunoya Osamaru, the head of the Crane Poetry Group, by Asaka no Kasumi (current
exhibition, No. 5).

In this example, understanding the relationship between the text and the image is
critical because both convey a wealth of information. The visual image and the

95
Asano Shūgō, and Timothy T. Clark. “An Overview of Surimono.” Impressions, no. 20 (1998): 16–37.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/42598038.

100
accompanying poetry, known as kyōka ("crazy verse") witty 31-syllable waka, was
conceived together. This combination of fine delicate calligraphy of multiple poems with
the image is now considered the classic surimono style that took its shape by the early
19th century.
The print also has a round seal of the designer Yanagawa (柳川) which means
“Willow Stream.” A small gourd-shaped seal in the bottom left corner of the print
indicates that the print was carved by an outstanding block cutter and printer Tani Seikō
(谷清好). A leading ukiyo-e scholar, Roger Keyes, characterizes him as “an
astonishingly gifted print maker, one of the few craftsmen who were equally adept at
cutting blocks and printing them”.96
Indeed, surimono, considered here, stands out for its artistic finesse. The figure of
the dancer is at once ample – it takes most of the print’s surface – and most subtle and
graceful. The gentle bent of the head and the upper part of the body is echoed by the
angle of the gohei wand and the curve of the sword. The gesture of the right hand raising
the open fan is strong yet soft. The garments are flowing down fluently but this fluidity is
balanced by the angularity of the outer colorful kimono – in both, its shapes, and its
pattern. Long hair of the dancer is obviously black but is printed in lighter shade and in
this it matches extraordinarily fine printing of the paper streamers of the gohei.

Traditional patterns used by Yanagawa Shigenobu in the Shirabyōshi surimono.

Remarkably sophisticated is the printing of all color parts of the composition.
This is true about the hues of the tan color palette used on the outer garment, the sash, the

96
Roger S. Keyes, “Tani Seikō and his circle,” Andon 72/73, 2002: 12

101
lining visible at the right sleeve edge, at the hem and turned over fragments as well as at
the wave pattern seigaiha that echoes the same pattern in gray. The tan also is used for
the chords of the hat and for the sword – both for chord winding over its hilt and for the
carved red-lacquer scabbard. Slight modulations of the ink saturation in the poems make
those printed lines rival those written by brush.
This exquisite surimono was designed by Yanagawa Shigenobu (1787-1832), a
print designer known particularly for his surimono, but also as a book illustrator and
painter. He was quite a prolific artist who worked in a variety of genres, including
yakusha-e – kabuki actor images, and bijinga – images of beauties. Yanagawa Shigenobu
was a pupil, a son-in-law, and an adopted son of Hokusai. Perhaps Shigenobu’s
knowledge of his teacher’s artistic style affected the subtle features of the surimono
considered here. Yanagawa Shigenobu has designed many exceptional surimono prints
for the Crane poetic group, and many of them are at the RISD Museum.97

Bibliography

Fiorillo, John. Viewing Japanese Prints, Website.

https://www.viewingjapaneseprints.net/texts/topics_faq/surimono_poems.html
Grapard Allan G. “Of Emperors and Foxy Ladies,” Buddhist Priests, Kings and
Marginals: Studies on Medieval Japanese Buddhism (2002-2003): 128
Hardacre, Helen. “Shirabyoshi (literally, White rhythm).” n.d. Japanese Wiki
Corpus. Accessed May 5, 2022. https://www.japanese-wiki-
corpus.org/culture/shirabyoshi%20(literally,%20White%20rhyhm).html.
Kárpáti, János. “Music of Female Shamans in Japan,” Studia Musicologica , Vol.
54, No. 3 (September 2013): 235, 245.
Keyes Roger S. “Tani Seikō and his circle,” Andon 72/73, 2002: 12
RISD Publication. Surimono from Osaka and Edo: The Pumpelly Album. The
RISD Museum surimono exhibition of 2008. https://risdmuseum.org/exhibitions-
events/exhibitions/surimono-osaka-and-edo
Shūgō, Asano, and Timothy T. Clark. “An Overview of Surimono.” Impressions,
no. 20 (1998): 16–37. http://www.jstor.org/stable/42598038.

97
RISD Publication. Surimono from Osaka and Edo: The Pumpelly Album, the RISD Museum surimono
exhibition of 2008. https://risdmuseum.org/exhibitions-events/exhibitions/surimono-osaka-and-edo

102
103
Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849). Random Sketches by Hokusai - Transmitting the Spirit,
Revealing the Form of Things (Denshin kaishu: Hokusai manga), Two Types of Walls.
Hakuga no Sanmi at Suzaku Gate. volume 5.
RISD. Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 31.394.5

104
 Courtier Hakuga no Sanmi & the Mysterious Stranger: The Uncanny Flute Duet
Maxton O’Connor

In this single page from Hokusai’s Manga book, Volume 598 created during the
Edo period, a single frame of the story of Hakuga no Sammi, or the Chinese reading of
the name of Minamoto no Hiromasa, and a mystery character is presented harmoniously
playing flutes in front of the Shujaku gate in the moonlight. Although printed with only
black ink, this print uses lines to eloquently describe the event in great detail. From the
intricate patterns of the mystery character’s ropes to the perfectly presented perspective
of the gate itself, it shows a great deal of the skill Hokusai used to describe gravely
important detail. Line weight, stroke marks, and form all work together in simplified
tandem to express this moment in Japanese historical storytelling in vivid living light.
One of the main foci in this print is music, as music is an integral part of the story itself. I
would firstly like to break the print down to its most fundamental portions, presenting
details that are gravely important in explaining the purposes behind such detail. I will
then interpret such details in an informative analysis. Lastly, I will contextualize the print
and all of its components to bring the essay to its conclusion.
This double-page spread comes from the fifth volume of Hokusai Manga, or Collection
of Random Sketches. Although playing music occurs on the lefthand page only, when a
book is open, both pages are seen at the same time. Both illustrations are equal in size
and hence in importance. Moreover, both pages of the spread share a topic since both are
dominated by the most careful representation of walls. Hokusai did so deliberately and
put in an inscription saying, “two types of walls.” It is inscribed at the top of the
righthand illustration. Since the reading standard in East Asian countries goes from right
to left, one would naturally start with the illustration on the right. The wall here appears a
partition on Zen Buddhist temple grounds. This is suggested by some architectural details
such as the bell-shaped latticed windows and a stone platform that supports the wall but
also by the figure of a cleanshaven monk. He is sweeping the premises to remove all of
the recently fallen brush and debris that perhaps had fallen down from a tall tree growing
behind the wall. This tree goes beyond the upper edge of the frame to suggest the image
would continue if not for the size of the paper it was printed on. Receding into the

98
Katsushika Hokusai, “Random Sketches by Hokusai (Hokusai Manga): Vol. 5, 1812-1849,” RISD
Museum (Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke), https://risdmuseum.org/art-design/collection/random-
sketches-hokusai-hokusai-manga-vol-5-313945

105
background is a true space without end. Similarly at the bottom there is a fragment of the
tiled roof, and a curved-up ridgepole of a structure, laying claim that what we see is only
a small portion of an ever-expanding story. Roughly above the main wall, but not
extruding beyond the frame is a sculpture of a lion perched upon the roof hovering above
the entire scene. This scene so eloquently expresses the vastness of the everyday. It
becomes apparent that this scene is just the focus of the artist, that there is an entire world
beyond the gaze of the artist. This depiction explains that real life is not a single frame or
idea, but rather everywhere and always. This notion is starkly different from that of the
image on the left with the space delimited by the architectural component. Regardless,
the two illustrations work harmoniously together. Both depict humans within
architectural settings. Moreover, both represent those humans in front of architecture, and
both comment on how architecture exists as a background of human life.
The scene on the left focuses on music – the point of our interest. However, the
intricate wall with the gate is also present prominently in the composition taking almost a
half of the picture area and will be commented upon below.
In this image on the left attention of the viewer is commanded by two middle-
aged or even elderly men, rather tall and corpulent. They are facing one another while
each is playing the horizontal flute yokobue. The musician on the left is facing away from
the print viewers and towards the other musician who thus is facing the onlookers. Both
men are fully absorbed in playing music – there is an air of inspirational concentration
around both.
The person with his back towards the viewers is wearing a voluminous long outer
garment. It is not ornamented in any way but the fabric it is made of seems thick and stiff
so that it holds well the garment’s distinct and almost architectural form. The
architectural quality of his garment is further expressed by the presence of the belt and
the visible seams introducing the sense of geometry and reflecting its construction. The
man’s hair is neatly upswept, and a tall hat of a courtier is placed on top of his head.
Although we don’t see his face, his full dedication to playing the flute is obvious. His
fingers move with ease over the instrument’s holes, his cheek is rounded full of air as he
is blowing, his eyes seem closed in rejection of the outer world.
The other musician has a broad face and rather a broad nose. His eyes perhaps
are also closed as he is fully absorbed in playing his flute. But many features in his
appearance made him contrast the musician on the left. He has quite distinguished bushy
hair that merges with his full beard and similarly bushy mustache. The hat on top of his

106
head is unlike the one worn by the first musician – maybe it is of Chinese style. His dress
is vastly different from that of the player turned away from us. It is a loose voluminous
robe with no belt. Unlike the first musician’s garment, its shape is much less pronounced
as it is falling softly down. It is also different in that it is decorated with lines of stacked
double spirals that look either embroidered or sewn over. There is an outlandish air about
his appearance and his outfit that makes it difficult to categorize his origin. It is
noteworthy that he is barefoot, a feature of being otherworldly.
So, who are the flutists? The one with his back to us is identified by the
inscription at the bottom of the composition. He is announced as Hakuga no Sanmi (博雅
三位). His name is written in kanji (Chinese characters). The first two characters can be
read either in Chinese – Hakuga, or in Japanese, 'Hiromasa;' the other two characters
stand for 'third rank' and define the man’s position at the imperial court. This is a well-
known historical character, Minamoto no Hiromasa ((源 博雅, 918 – 980), a grandson of
Emperor Daigo (885-930), and a prominent musician of Gagaku – classical Japanese
music played at the imperial court. Since he wasn’t designated as a successor to the
throne, he was given the surname according to the established practice. Thus, he became
Minamoto Hiromasa. He excelled in playing a variety of instruments, including the zither
koto, the lute biwa, the flute, etc. He is credited with compiling a famous music
anthology called “Hakuga no Fue-fu” (Hakuga’s Flute Score); the system of music
notation he elaborated continues to be used to this day.99
According to the website of the Ota Memorial Museum of ukiyo-e, illustrated
here is a popular legend about this prominent historic figure. The legend comes from the
mid-Kamakura period’s collection of setsuswa (tales, anecdotes) called Jikkinsho (十訓
抄) – Ten Selected Maxims.100 The story explains that Hakuga no Sanmi was playing one
night near the Suzaku Gate – the main gate at the southern side of the imperial palace
grounds. “Suzaku” refers to the “vermilion bird” that is regarded as the guardian of the
South. As Hakuga no Sanmi was playing his flute, another man started playing the same
way. Hakuga no Sanmi was astonished by the playing, wondering how there could ever
be anyone that could play so well. The two played under the full moonlight from then on.
On one occasion, the two exchanged flutes, and Hakuga no Sanmi gained skill unparallel
to anyone. This stranger is believed to be a supernatural being and the flute he gave to

99
Minamoto no Hiromasa, Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minamoto_no_Hiromasa
100
Ota Memorial Museum, webpage dedicated to legend about Minamoto no Hiromasa and the demon’s
flute: https://otakinen-museum.note.jp/n/n6e63aa3fe315. Provided by the instructor.

107
Hakuga no Sanmi became known as “the demon’s flute” (oni-no fue). The alternative
story tells of Hakuga no Sanmi longing to receive instruction in lute playing from an
exceedingly famous blind musician and poet, a nobleman Semimaru. He finally received
this instruction after coming to the musician’s hut for three consecutive nights. Here,
however, obviously the story of enigmatic stranger is referred to here.
It is noteworthy that Hokusai was neither the first nor last artist to depict this
scene. In the collection of the British Museum there is Tachibana Morikuni’s illustrated
book Pictures of Noted Poets, also Birds & Flowers (Ehon Oshukubai 絵本鴬宿梅), Fig.
A.101 It dates to 1740 and presents the same story in a similar composition, with
Minamoto no Hiromasa not facing the viewer. Preceding Hokusai’s depiction by roughly
three quarters of a century, it is safe to assume that Hokusai was familiar with the
Tachibana Morikuni’s image. Hokusai resorts to Morikuni’s image structure for his own
depiction of this story. And for a good reason since putting both characters front-facing
the viewer would only lessen the intensity of the two characters' interaction crucial for
the story. This is all the more remarkable if one thinks about the ability of ukiyo-e artists
to capture individuality of faces and of facial expressions in the kabuki theater context.
As said above, here this decision certainly was deliberate.

Fig. A. Tachibana Morikuni (1670-1748). Pictures of Noted Poets, also Birds & Flowers. P.
26. British Museum number: 1915,0823,0.26.102

101
Tachibana Morikuni 橘守国. “Ehon Oshukubai 絵本鴬宿梅.”, 1740. The British Museum. © The
Trustees of the British Museum. https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1915-0823-0-26-
102
Ibid.

108
 Interestingly, another artist that succeeded Hokusai in illustrating the same story
believed this approach to be true as well. A later ukiyo-e artist, Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
(1839-1892) included in his series “One Hundred Aspects of the Moon” a print titled
Suzaku Gate Moon: Hakuga Sanmi (朱雀門の月博雅三位)103 dated 1886 (Fig. B). In
this design, Hakuga no Sanmi is also presented with his back to the viewer. The artist
makes the story identifiable through the characters’ stature as well as the garment, and
more specifically, by the gate and the ambience of the surroundings. Utilizing the same
compositional formula, each artist was able to render closeness between the characters
without having to directly express the individual's identity visually. Such visual definition
would be excessive since all three illustrations of the story concerned here have the name
of the main character clearly expressed in writing.

Fig. B. Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (月岡芳年, 1839 - 1892). Suzaku Gate Moon: Hakuga Sanmi. Series:
One Hundred Aspects of the Moon (Tsuki no hyakushi 月百姿). No. 19 in the series. 1886. British
Museum number: 1906,1220,0.1450.104

Though the main characters present the key modes of telling the story, it is
necessary to consider the architecture in which the story itself is grounded. In Hokusai
Manga oftentimes the environment seems left out for the purpose of letting the main

103
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (月岡芳年, 1839 - 1892). Suzaku Gate Moon: Hakuga Sanmi. (Suzakumon no tsuki
朱雀門の月). Series: 100 Aspects of the Moon (Tsuki no hyakushi 月百姿). No. 19 in the series. 1886.
British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1906-1220-0-1450
104
Ibid.

109
subject express its environment through its physical qualities. Because this piece is
expressing a historically relevant story, the environment becomes almost as important as
the characters themselves in presenting the story to the full. Because these are single
prints, all the viewer has to understand from the piece must be in the piece. Being that
this story takes place in front of the Suzakumon Gate, it is an integral piece of the story
that can visually aid the viewer with such information as to deduce the story through
detail. Suzakumon Gates were built at the southern end of imperial palaces in ancient
cities in Japan. The cities in which these palaces were built were set up within grid
systems in accordance with the cardinal directions, having the southernmost gate be the
most important and the most fortuitous. According to geomancy at the time, the north
was seen as the most dangerous, so the palace was almost always positioned in the north
of the city as a protective force. The story itself is woven into this practice, and the
viewer may see this through the illustration.
The gate is comprised mainly of straight lines creating some form of
orthographic perspective that pushes the figures forward. But just this contrast
between straight lines and curved lines isn't enough to describe the gate. It
includes vastly different patterns that add to the recognizable factors of the gate.
Inlets of fine patterns of interlocking circles unfold from posts and wall dividers
right behind the figures. The gridded walls fall back behind, suggesting the
entrance that is the true component of the gate falls slightly behind the characters.
This print uses imagery decisively to lend the viewer the most accurate
understanding of the story. Previously we discussed the architecture as not only a call
towards the actual historical significance of its presence in the story but a mode in which
it places the characters in a moment of solitude as well. In saying all of this, I am trying
to point out the selective nature of Hokusai’s work, that great detail is used only when
necessary.
Beyond this though, the architecture of the gate serves as a stark and rigid
contrast to the characters that operate in front. It expresses form through perspective,
through a rigid system of the grid and wood-carved patterning that pushes the characters
vastly to the front.
Another peculiar detail is the way how the architecture is presented in its total
break in the middle of the page – how it fades out to nothing. This detail serves as
another note towards Hokusai’s selective use of detail. There is no question whether or

110
not the background is a gate, as what is shown eloquently brings that point across. What
Hokusai has chosen to do is to end it there. What has been accomplished served its
purpose. To continue the scene further would only add unnecessary detail considering the
fateful encounter of the two musicians occurred on the full moon night and the soft
moonlight is perhaps shown dissolving the details. Hokusai’s choice to fade the gate into
the rest of the background serves to bring the two characters closer in importance to each
other through their collective solitude. The void of the piece brings their relationship
within the story to the forefront of the viewer's understanding. There is no need to point
the attention elsewhere, as the story is wholly expressing the importance of the two
characters enacting the music.
What is most beautiful is that the multitude of details accentuates that music is
this image’s main purpose. All points of reference and detail meet to contextualize the
presence of music.
This print is incredibly rich in its deliberate touch. Hokusai took a enthralling
legend of ample historical significance with previous depictions in mind and created an
even more deliberate and fascinating scene. By calling towards only what is necessary
while also nodding towards what had already been completed in previous depictions,
Hokusai was able to refine and redefine the story to such a distinguished form.

Bibliography

Clark, Timothy, ed. Beyond the Great Wave. The Trustees of British Museum,
Thames and Hudson, London. 2017.
Ota Memorial Museum, webpage dedicated to legend about Minamoto no
Hiromasa and the Demon’s flute: https://otakinen-museum.note.jp/n/n6e63aa3fe315
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (月岡芳年, 1839 - 1892). Suzaku Gate Moon: Hakuga
Sanmi. (Suzakumon no tsuki 朱雀門の月). Series: 100 Aspects of the Moon (Tsuki no
hyakushi 月百姿). No. 19 in the series. 1886. British Museum,
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1906-1220-0-1450
Minamoto Hiromasa, Wikipedia:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minamoto_no_Hiromasa

111
112
 Part V.
MARTIAL MUSIC:
THE CONCH SHELL & MILITARY DRUMS

113
Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849). Random Sketches by Hokusai - Transmitting the Spirit,
Revealing the Form of Things (Denshin kaishu: Hokusai manga). Display of Courage and
Vigor. Vol. 9.
RISD Museum, Gift of the Estate of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 31.394.9

114
 MARTIAL MUSIC & DISPLAY OF COURAGE AND VIGOR
IN HOKUSAI MANGA
Yuhi Chang
Eleven rather stout figures of military men, neither young nor athletic, are
depicted by Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1840), one of Japan’s greatest ukiyo-e artists.
This very detailed, precise, and humorous depiction appears on a double-leaf spread from
volume No. 9 of his fifteen-volume encyclopedic collection of random sketches known as
Hokusai Manga.
In the image all men except for two fully clad warriors in the low half of the left-
hand page are putting on their samurai armor.105 Some are struggling harder than others.
Obviously, putting on an armor of many parts is a long and multistep process. The artist’s
choice of moments of this process makes it almost like a step-by-step instruction of how
to put on the armor. The artist starts with the undergarments at the top left of the right
page, then slowly depicts each step of putting on elements of the armor until the viewer
reaches to the bottom of the left page. There two men have decided to play the drum and
a conch shell. The drum and conch shell are played in the military as signals. The
interesting part is how the conch shell is called a horagai (aka jinkai) and is often used to
signal an impending battle. This makes the print into what looks like a manga in the
present day meaning of the term as it is almost like a story.
The drum in the print with the wood like patterns on it makes it look like it is
created from wood, not being painted over with woodgrain pattern. The stand being made
from posts of wood and woven cord infers the drum is used more for practical military
purposes rather than the more elaborately decorated ceremonial drums. Drums in the war
are usually used to help with marching but in this case the drum posts being embedded
into the ground would say otherwise. With that in mind the drums are probably used to
call the attention of the troops which fits better especially since it is depicted alongside
the conch shell. The text in the top translates to “we are about to go to war” which ties all
of this together almost like a title of an image that depicts this scene.

105
Maybe all characters in this composition represent the same person at the consecutive stages of action,
however it has been decided to discuss the figures here as a group of individuals.

115
GETTING READY FOR THE BATTLE
The narrative of the book spread, if there is one, starts at the top of the right page.
Of the three corpulent figures the one on the left is shown putting on a fundoshi.
Fundoshi are the equivalent of what we would consider underwear, and a version of it is
worn today by sumo wrestlers. The figure in the middle is shown donning a pair of
suneate. Suneate are Japanese greaves (shin guards) which usually consisted of vertical
armor plates made out of iron or leather. Those plates were connected using either hinges
or kusari (mail armor). The figure on the right is depicted putting on a manchira (満智
羅). Manchira is a ko-gusoku (small armor) made for guarding the area around the
shoulders. It is typically made out of iron, cloth, and chains. The two figures below them
are similarly representing the next few steps in putting on the armor. The figure on the
left is depicted with his back facing us and it is hard to tell what he is doing as it is hidden
from our view but the fact that they are in a sitting position indicates a high likelihood of
him putting on a piece of armor that has to do with his lower body. Another explanation
that can also fit is his posture makes it look like he is crossing his arms and might
indicate him taking a break as putting on armor was a rather demanding task and him
being on the corpulent side may have struggled a bit harder with it. The figure on the
right is putting on a pair of kote, which are armored sleeves. These are usually created
with cylindrical shaped fabric with mail and pieces of steel plates attached to it. At the
bottom right of the right page is a figure putting on his left waraji (sandals). His posture
indicates the difficulty of sitting bending down when almost fully dressed and shows him
using a tawara (rice bale) as a stool to help him put on his waraji.

Right: Step-by-step instruction on how to put the samurai armor. Edo period book.

116
 The figure to his left is depicted putting on a haidate which is armor in the shape
of an apron created to protect the thighs. Moving on to the left page, at the top there is
some text.
Below that are two figures. The figure to the right is shown putting on the dō
(breastplate) while the figure to the left is shown sitting on a tawara while putting on a
kote which indicates that there are at least two separate figures depicted as the kote was
already seen being put on. As has been already mentioned, at the bottom of the left page,
the two figures are shown playing a taiko (drum) and a horagai (conch-shell trumpet).
Not only the accuracy but the human nature of how the military men are depicted
shows Hokusai's expert knowledge of samurai armor and testifies to his deep
understanding of the pain points associated with the process. It is also interesting as it can
potentially be used to pinpoint which clan in particular Hokusai is referring to in his
illustration. There existed an official way of putting on the armor, but it differed slightly
from clan to clan with many of the details considered to be a secret.

MUSIC IN MILITARY CONTEXT

Illustration of the music topic takes about two thirds of the left-hand page
underscoring its significance in the military context. The figures being depicted as rather
corpulent reflects upon their status as musicians. Both the roundness of the barrel drum
and the fact that wind instruments such as horagai takes a lot of breath. This paired with
the roundness that the musicians are depicted in, reflects the role that musicians play in
war where the sound they produce must bellow and pierce the other ongoing sounds on
the battlefield. In the case of the print, the musicians are playing their instruments to
signal the start of the operation as communicated also by the already mentioned text at
the top of the page stating that they were about to go to war.
Horagai and taiko are essential instruments used by Japan during conflict. They
are not only used to set rhythm for marching and to signal strategies but also to boost
morale. To accomplish this, these instruments must have the capability to be both heard
over the battlefield and create distinct rhythm or tones. These instruments are seen in
other ukiyo-e prints such as Great Battle in Outer Hyōgo. The Battle of Minatogawa
(1336) by Utagawa Kuniyoshi where it depicts the taiko drum and the conch shell along
with a bell being used in the middle of the battlefield.

117
Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797–1861). Great Battle in Outer Hyōgo (Hyōgo no omote ōgassen no zu):
The Battle of Minatogawa (兵庫表大合戦之図). MFA, 11.41071a-c.106

Another print depicts the story of Sakai Tadatsugu (1527-1596) illustrated by

Migita Toshihide (1863-1925), a later ukiyo-e artist, a student of famous Tsukioka
Yoshitoshi to be discussed below. Legend places the taiko drum in the center of the
events. The story goes that Sakai Tadatsugu had come to Tokugawa Ieyasu’s aid when
his army had suffered a defeat at the hands of Takeda Shingen by beating a taiko in the
Hamamatsu Castle. In doing so, he made Shingen think the drums were there to welcome

Migita Toshihide (1863-1925). Sakai Tadatsugu 酒井忠嗣 .

Series: Eighteen Acts of Glory (Meiyo juhachi ban). The British Museum.107

106
MFA, https://collections.mfa.org/objects/472054/great-battle-in-outer-hyogo-hyogo-no-omote-ogassen-no-zu
107
British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1906-1220-0-1532

118
home the vast army of Ieyasu. As curator’s comments of the British Museum explain,
Takeda Shingen unsure of the strengths of Ieyasu’s remaining army didn’t attack the
castle but camp for the night near it where Ieyasu’s forces ambushed Takeda’s army and
defeated it.108
The horagai conch shells were often used to signal strategies during combat and
are depicted in some ukiyo-e prints. Examples include a triptych by Utagawa Kuniyoshi,
Kusunoki Masashige and His Men Making Straw Dummies to Trick the Enemy into
Exhausting Their Arrows. As the title suggests, there was a strategy used by Kusunoki
Masashige (1294-1336) in which stray dummies were made and place in the middle of
the battlefield during combat to cause the enemy to waste their arrows on them. This
strategy was employed upon the sounding of the horagai which is depicted at the front
and near the center of the print of the busy panoramic battlefield composition.

Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797-1861). Kusunoki Masashige and His Men Making Straw Dummies to
Trick the Enemy into Exhausting Their Arrows (楠正成藁人形造敵箭奪図 Kusunoki Masashige
wara no ningyô no tsukuri). 1857. Robinson: T341. Private collection.

The horagai can be used to signify the start of a battle like the print by Hokusai
depicts but it is often also used to signify the end or closure of a battle. This is shown in a
print called The Moon at the Shizugatake by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi.

108
British Museum, curator’s comments, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1906-1220-0-
1532

119
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-1892). The Moon at the Shizugadake (Shizugatake tsuki).
Series: One Hundred Aspects of the Moon (Tsuki no hyakushi). Number 67 in the set. 1888.
British Museum.109

In this print, Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-1598) is shown blowing a horn to

signify the victory against Shibata Katsuie in the historic battle at Shizugatake (1583).
These among many other prints depicting the takio and horagai have propelled these
instruments into a legendary status amidst the battlefields of Japan.

IN CONCLUSION
Music was omnipresent in Edo period Japan – we see an almost infinite variety
of situations where music is being played in ukiyo-e prints studied for our virtual
exhibition or displayed at the RISD Museum in the exhibition “Striking Chords.”
Martial music discussed in this essay is highly specific. Hokusai shows this by
portraying his military musicians in the action of playing but providing no context. Thus,
the artist makes the viewer focus on musical properties of the instruments as such. As
always, Hokusai’s images appear at once visually keen and playful – the effect achieved
here by how he makes the shapes of the battlefield musical instruments and of the
warriors “resonate” with each other.

109
British Museum, https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1906-1220-0-1462

120
 Bibliography
Bedrosov, Boris. n.d. “The Evolution of Japanese Armour.” MyArmoury.com.
http://myarmoury.com/feature_jpn_armour.html.
The British Museum, curator’s comments:
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1906-1220-0-1532
“ファミマプリント.” n.d. Fp.famima.com. Accessed May 6, 2022.
https://fp.famima.com/study/unsodo/1090500018.html.
“HISTORY of TAIKO - Taiko Center Co., Ltd.” n.d. Www.taiko-Center.co.jp.
https://www.taiko-center.co.jp/english/history_of_taiko.html.
“喉輪・脇当・満智羅.” n.d. 刀剣ワールド. Accessed May 6, 2022.
https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/51888/.
Loderichs, Niek. n.d. “Conch Shell Horn.” Things That Talk.
https://thingsthattalk.net/en/t/ttt:TFKLKo/overview.
The MFA, https://collections.mfa.org/objects/472054/great-battle-in-outer-
hyogo-hyogo-no-omote-ogassen-no-zu
Shop, Taiko Center Online. n.d. “9 Most Popular Types of Taiko.” Taiko Center Online
Shop. https://taiko-shop.com/blogs/learn/most-popular-types-of-taiko.
“Types of Taiko.” n.d. The Taiko Connection.
http://thetaikoconnection.weebly.com/types-of-taiko.html.

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After Totoya Hokkei, 1780-1850. Cockerel on Drum Grown with Ivy, 1890's
Polychrome woodblock print with embossing and metallic pigments
Shikishiban: 21 x 18.1 cm (8 5/16 x 7 1/8 inches)
RISD. Gift of Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. 34.367

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 THE CALENDAR DRUM, ROOSTER, & GOOD FORTUNE
Milo Tomizawa and Zhiying Shi

This small print has almost a square shape (7”x8”) known as shikishiban, a
format predominantly used for privately commissioned prints, the surimono, as is the
case here. Almost the entire space is taken by a white silhouette of a big and somewhat
disheveled rooster perched on a red barrel drum, o-daiko (大太鼓). Around the drum and
the rooster, darker and lighter green ivy leaves on a vine are climbing. Obviously, the
scene is happening outside, but where exactly is not clear. The background is that of
scratched gold over the dull green. In the top left area, there is a poem inscribed in black
ink. The name of the poem’s author is written along the left edge of the print. Below it,
also along the print’s left edge there is a small white frame with red borders. Inside the
frame the name of the print’s designer is printed in two vertical lines - Aoigaoka Hokkei
(葵岡北渓), one of the artistic names of Totoya Hokkei (1790-1850).
The composition is an extreme close-up. Thus, the shapes appear as intriguing
abstract configurations in addition to being representational. This lends this image quite a
compelling visual power. The rooster seen from above with its feathers bristling and the
tail bending to a side looks like a huge, inverted comma with jagged contours. Delicate
lines are embossed all over the rooster’s body rendering a characteristic wavy pattern of
feather distribution. No tonal variances are present in the white. The rooster perches on a
red drum. Its scaly and thin feet splay out from underneath, countering the weight of its
tilted head. The bird’s legs are spread wide, and the talons are slightly hooked in order for
it to balance on the round and smooth body of the drum. The bird’s head is cocked to the
side, while it is making eye contact with the viewer. The tilt of the rooster’s head results
in its comb and wattle lying flat with both also forming spiky outlines. Two hues of red
color were used to print the comb and the wattle here. In this manner its grainy texture is
believably captured. Both, the embossing of the bird’s feathers and the choice of two
hues of red for the caruncula - the comb and the wattles - are done with an expert
knowledge of the bird’s anatomy and other physical features.
In size, the drum is commensurate with the bird. This is a big drum of the type
known as o-daiko. The o-daiko has a convex wooden body and two tacked heads. It is
usually set on a crate and although we don’t see it here, the drum is in a horizontal

123
position as if on a crate. Such drums are played on either the skins or the rim with two
blunt sticks.110 The barrel part of the drum is red with a wavy pattern that imitates
woodgrain and seems to be a common design to be used on drums. Another print on the
current exhibition – a double-leaf from volume 9 of Hokusai Manga - shows a warrior
beating an o-daiko drum with two blunt sticks, as described above. The body of the o-
daiko in Hokusai’s print is also decorated with a wood-grain pattern.
The skin of the drum looks to be attached with metal rivets, which border the
circumference and encircle two navy blue reptiles. It is not clear what these reptiles are.
Only one reptile is fully visible. It is covered with golden lines rendering its scale. Its
body, legs, and tail look very powerful and evoke an image of a dragon, but the head is
small and of a simple oval shape. Centered on the skin of the drum is a crenellation-type
design with consecutive inner circles of red, white, blue, green, and red colors. In the
very center, a circle of desaturated olive-green marks the background for a “sacred gem”
or a “flaming jewel” – Chintamani in Sanskrit and hōju (宝珠) in Japanese. It is described
as “a tapering, ringed pearl surmounted by flames. In a non-religious context, it appears
as an auspicious symbol.”111 Its shape invited comparison with an eye, its red iris peering
up and observing the rooster. A heavy under-eye bag of navy punctuates the bottom lid.

Center of drum skin – flaming jewel in the center, calendrical marks on crenelations.
Each of the thirteen visible crenelations of the outer rim are lined with a white
border. Every alternating scallop contains numerical kanji – starting from the right and
moving counterclockwise they read “正, 三, 五, 七, 十, 十二”. They are counting off
alternating “long” months – 1 (January), 3 (March), 5 (May), 7 (July), 10 (October), 12
(December).

110
William Malm. Japanese Music and Musical Instruments. Charles E. Tuttle Company. Rutland, Vermont,
Tokyo, Japan. 1959, 48.
111
Merrily Baird. Symbols of Japan. Rizzoli International Publications, NYC, NY, 2001. P. 225.

124
 Such clandestine inclusion of month numbers in ukiyo-e print design was a
measure to go around the governmental restrictions on annual lunar calendar
publications, the right that was granted to only certain publishing houses. In the early
18th century, there started to appear prints with hidden signs for long months of 30 days
(dai) and short months of 29 days (shō) as well as the signs for the intercalary month
once in three years.
Surrounding the two forms – that of the rooster and the drum – is an arrangement
of seventeen ivy leaves (tsuta) in varying shades of green. They transition from dark
green to very light green to almost grayish green with some leaves combining different
shades in most subtly printed gradation. It is an important printing technique known as
bokashi. Ivy is a winding plant and as its vine is climbing, the leaves readily turn with
their glossy deep green side or a much lighter and dull reverse. The artist rendered this
feature of the ivy plant with sensitivity.
References to the ivy have a long history in Japanese literature and the arts. In the
Tales of Ise there is a hero who finds a narrow passage nearly impenetrable because of
the ivy growing there. Thus, representation of ivy can symbolize decay, a remote
loneliness, and the peace of solitude.112
This symbolism of the ivy takes us closer to the symbolism of the entire scene.
Depiction of a rooster on a drum is an allegory of peace of ancient Chinese origin. If the
drums placed outside the cities for complaints of the citizens or the military drums calling
the army to battle are silent, the country enjoys peace and prosperity. This traditional
combination of the images of a rooster nesting on a drum is defined by the term
kankodori. Thus, the scene carries auspicious meaning. Auspiciousness of this
composition has one additional aspect. Since the rooster is one of the Zodiac symbols,
representation of roosters can be used as a greeting for the New Year of the Cock or
could be presented to the individuals born in the year of the cock.
According to the same book “Symbols in Japan,” the cock is the tenth of the
twelve zodiac animals of the Far East and is regarded by the Chinese as an embodiment
of the Five Virtues. In Japan, the rooster has been associated with courage and a martial
spirit, reflecting its use in cock fights. The rooster also has religious significance for the
Japanese. Kojiki, one of Japan’s earliest chronicles of myths and history, tells that a
rooster was brought to the cave where the sun goddess, Amaterasu no O-mikami, had

112
Ibid., p. 85

125
hidden herself, and the rooster’s crowing tricked the goddess into believing the day could
have started without her. This was one of the steps that helped to lure the sun goddess out
and restore light to the earth. Rooster is a sacred bird in Shintoism and can be seen in
Shinto main shrines, for example, in Ise Jingu in Mie Prefecture or Atsuta Shrine in
Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture.
It is now important to remember that the print under consideration is a surimono.
As privately commissioned prints, surimono usually were designed and published as a
limited edition for an occasion – in a way comparable to a greeting card. The majority of
surimono bear poetic inscriptions. Sometimes surimono prints were commissioned by
poetic groups - such are two other surimono in our exhibition [Nos. 5 and 10]. This print
doesn’t seem to be associated with a poetic group but there is a poem in the upper left
quarter of the print. It is transcribed on the Ukiyo-e Database Portal of Ritsumeikan
University113 and was tentatively translated by a classmate, RISD Graphic Design
student, Monet Fukawa. Monet suggested that the poem could mean the following:

Detail of the surimono with the text of the poem.

From afar, they [the roosters] sing together the first chorus at dawn
or
Echoing from afar, I hear the roosters syncing together

Monet also noted that the author of the poem's name, 瑞堂暁鴉, translates to the
“morning crow.”114
Monet’s casting light on the meaning of the poem underscores the significance of

113
The poem is transcribed as: 「千さとまてうたひあはせつ初八声 瑞堂暁鴉」「正三五七十十二」
https://www.dh-jac.net/db/nishikie/results-big.php?f1[]=MET-
DP123625&f9[]=%2A&f11[]=1&&enter=portal&lang=en&skip=0&singleskip=0
114
Monet Fukawa. Private correspondence.

126
the interaction between text and image on surimono, triggering additional associations.
Another distinctive feature of the surimono prints is the extraordinary luxury and
refinement that can be seen in its each and every feature. Surimono were printed on
thicker and softer paper with the best pigments, often with metallic dusts, and with the
application of a wide range of advanced and sophisticated techniques. In the present case
all these traits are present. The blind printing or gaurfage is known as karazuri or “empty
printing” in Japanese. Here it is applied on the rooster’s body with remarkable artistry.
Golden dust is used to mark the background around all the objects – is this a hint on the
sunlight at dawn? This certainly is the time when the rooster crows. This time is also
mentioned in the poem and is present in the poet’s name, not to mention its relevance to
the myth of Amaterasu no O-mikami.
It is also worth mentioning that specific as the kankodori composition is, it
belongs to one of the major ukiyo-e genres - the kachō-ga (花鳥画) or “pictures of
flowers and birds.” In the kachoga genre representation of a small fragment of nature was
appreciated for how it conveyed the spirit of nature in addition to the motif’s
decorativeness and symbolic meanings. This surimono combines all these features with
remarkable mastery.
Totoya Hokkei who designed this surimono was a print designer, book illustrator
and painter from Edo. His biographical notes tell us that he was a fishmonger, that he
studied painting with an artist from the Kanō School, an official painting school for the
military class. Totoya Hokkei later became a student of Katsushika Hokusai. He worked
in various genres and formats but surimono was his forte. He produced more surimono
than other Hokusai’s students. It is said that the rough estimate of his surimono
production is about eight hundred prints.115 His works enjoyed the high esteem of ukiyo-e
lovers. In the beginning of the 20th century some of his designs were reprinted. Is this the
case with the current imprint as the label says “after Totoya Hokkei”? If this is indeed the
case, it only attests to the unfading glory of this artist.
This surimono print, with its rich pigments and balanced composition, its rich
with symbolism and history serves as a perfect example of how music can bring together
deep and significant cultural layers. The calendar drum, once used to announce
grievances, has long since been used for its intended purpose, and now resonates only to
the steps of a rooster, the embodiment of virtue and courage.

115
The Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Prints. Ed. Amy Riegle Newland. Amsterdam, 2004.V. 2, p. 497

127
 Bibliography

Baird, Merrily. Symbols of Japan. Thematic Motifs in Art and Design. Rizzoli
International Publications, NYC, NY, 2001.
Malm, William. Japanese Music and Musical Instruments. Charles E. Tuttle
Company. Rutland, Vermont, Tokyo, Japan. 1959
The Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Woodblock Prints. Ed. Amy Riegle
Newland. Hotei Publishing. Amsterdam, 2004.
Ukiyo-e Database Portal of Ritsumeikan University: https://www.dh-
jac.net/db/nishikie/results-big.php?f1[]=MET-
DP123625&f9[]=%2A&f11[]=1&&enter=portal&lang=en&skip=0&singleskip=0

128
 Part VI.
MUSIC IN ANNUAL OBSERVANCES
& SEASONAL CELEBRATIONS

129
Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III), 1786-1865
The First Month: First Dance of the New Year. Series: During the Twelve Months.
Publisher: Tsutaya Kichizo. 1854.
RISD. Gift of Marshall H. Gould, 30.039.12

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STAGE, DANCE, & GOOD LUCK INVOCATIONS IN EDO JAPAN
as seen in ukiyo-e triptych by Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III)
Hanna Suros, Yisheng Yuan, Jiayun “Carina” Zhang, Zizheng “Roye” Zhang

I. QUICK OBSERVATIONS: THE FIRST DANCE OF THE YEAR

Hanna Suros
In a large room two young and beautiful women are dancing to live string music
played by the similarly good-looking female musician. This event is represented on an
ukiyo-e woodblock printed triptych designed by Utagawa Toyokuni III or Kunisada
(1786-1865), one of the leading ukiyo-e artists of his time. The image is so full of details
that it is necessary to look closely and analyze those.
Observation will unfold from right to left, the direction of writing in East Asia.
The woman on the right is playing shamisen whilst sitting on a platform stage. A large
bookrest is placed in front of her. Behind her is a large painted panel featuring a
blossoming plum tree. The shamisen player is dressed in a blue kimono patterned with
white, pink, and yellow peonies. The blue of the kimono creates a tonal gradient, the top
being much darker than the very light blue bottom reminiscent of the sky transitioning
from night to day. On the side of the kimono, we see a fragment of a bamboo flower cart
also holding a bouquet of peonies. The musician wears a plain red layer underneath her
ornate outer garment. The red of this inner kimono pools onto the floor behind her
camouflaging with the carpet of the same color. The front board of the stage is also light
blue that is patterned with roundels shaped by peonies and karakusa, the Chinese grass
vine. The bookrest of black lacquer is likewise adorned with peonies applied in the
sprinkled-picture technique maki-e. Two tassels are hanging down from it attached with
metal rings. Even though we do see this bright yellow color throughout the panel with the
kimono and even the detailing of the plum tree in the back it is the most striking on the
book rest because of the color combination.
The figure in the middle panel is one of the two performing the “spring horse” or
“harugoma” dance. She is standing tall with her arms extended upward, holding a horse
puppet on her left hand and the cloth reigns in her right. She dances in front of the
painted sliding walls, fusuma, decorated with small pine trees. The dancer wears a
kimono with a white and purple striped pattern. In the white of the pattern there are

131
plover birds flying diagonally. This dancer also wears a black sash with bright yellow
swirls which is the same color combination as the bookrest in the shamisen player’s
panel. This black-and-yellow color arrangement moves the viewer's eye through the print.
The red layer underneath the dancer’s outer garment is patterned with the asa-no-ha
design of connected hemp leaves. The same pattern is seen on the handkerchief
underneath the puppet. On the dancer’s head a purple cloth is tied in a bow under her
chin. Clusters of blue cherry blossoms embellishing her hairdo are sticking out from
underneath the headscarf.
On the sliding walls behind her there are hanging tassels similar to those on the
bookrest. Here the tassels are attached to an orange and yellow shape which are the
finger-catch hikite (引き手) that serve as the handles to open the screen.
The dancer of the leftmost panel wears the same costume and dances in front of
the same pine tree lined screen as the above-discussed dancer from the central panel. The
key difference with this dancer is that she is crouched down and holds her hobby horse’s
reins more tightly than the other. Both dancers’ robes billow with their movements
suggesting that the performers are in motion.
There are repeating cartouches on each panel as well as the markings related to
the print’s production, such as the seal of the carver, the publisher, the censorship seal,
and the seal of the year. The left panel is the only one that holds a circular toshidama
cartouche with the title of the series and of this triptych. It is conspicuously located in the
upper left corner of the composition.
Meanings of the observed elements and aspects of this triptych are discussed in
the following chapters of this essay.

II. SPACE: ZASHIKI & THE PONY DANCE IN LATE EDO PERIOD JAPAN
Yisheng Yuan
The depiction of the interior is very profound in this print since it serves as a
scene of action. The floor the two performers are dancing on is laid with planks in front
of a fusuma painted with small evergreen pines. The shamisen player sits on a raised
platform shown on the rightmost panel. The platform is upholstered with a scarlet carpet.
Behind the shamisen player, there placed a tsuitate, a single-panel portable partitioning
screen. A plum tree in full blossom is portrayed against a light, off-white, creamish
background. It is decorated with small square pieces of golden foils called kirihaku. The
sprinkled lacquer bookrest for the text in a joruri performance and the platform side

132
below the carpet have peonies with karakusa in style associated with the Ichikawa
lineage116 of Kabuki actors. Every element, including the shamisen player’s surroundings,
composes a part of a micro theater scene that one might suggest this event was planned
toward in the first place.
The pronounced rectangularity found in this print is the entrance for viewers’
eyes. The sliding doors, the planks of the floor, the podium, and the viewport of the print
all take shape in rectangles. Normally, rectangles afford strong implications for
symmetry. But if we look at this print’s composition macroscopically, the placement of
the shamisen player and of the podium, as well as the inclusion of the tsuitate screen
instead of having the entire wall of fusuma sliding doors, and the slant arrangement of
floor planks -- all these elements break the symmetry that this composition could possibly
offer. This arrangement is perhaps rooted in that the Japanese believe in the beauty of
nature, which is the core of their architectural culture. They always contrive to create
architecture as a painting of nature.117 Nature is predictable yet unsystematic. Japanese
recognize beauty as multifaceted, so is nature. Natural configuration proceeds in their
growing and living pattern that can be analyzed and studied, and relevant scrutiny is
nothing rare to be found in Japanese art and philosophy. It is comprehensible how nature
performs certain routines, such as falling and withering, though, to the Japanese,
comprehension is a manifestation of nature’s inevitable limits.118 It is proposed in this
essay that limitations as such are hosted in rectangles and wood construction. Even
though nature sometimes exposes clues to its configurations, it can never be defined. The
individuality and accident that take over the aesthetics of nature are what is truly vital to
the Japanese. 119 For instance, the plum trees and peonies represented in this print are
independently symbolic and important. They hold asymmetrical meanings that are not
fathomed by the expected measure of patterns or rules. In Japanese architectural
philosophy, the symmetrical arrangement is considered an intellectual intrusion and
artificial correction of nature, corresponding to humans’ comprehension of nature, which
is regarded as the limits of nature. The human interruption is rude and even profane,
breaking the balance between humans, nature, and the gods.120 Human reasoning, in this
case is not accepted by the Japanese. However, it is not implying that there should be no

116
Cleveland Museum of Art, https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1943.5
117
Ramberg, Walter Dodd. "Some Aspects Of Japanese Architecture," p34-47. The MIT Press on behalf of
Perspecta, 1960. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1566890
118
Ibid.
119
Ibid.
120
Ibid.

133
order in Japanese architecture, just like there is also order in nature that humans cannot
deny. We are still seeing elements of symmetry scaffolding the architecture and the
triptych, which can already be read as an epitome of Japanese architecture. We notice the
symmetry is revealed by the rectangle motifs and the identical depiction of the two
dancers’ appearances, but its power has no extension more than that. In the rightmost
panel, with the shamisen player, the stand, podium, and the plum-tree tsuitate — these
properties of accident strive to stop the symmetrical invasion and resume the picture into
a more irregular and asymmetric presentation.
The asymmetry, however, has taken further roles here than its function in
aesthetics and philosophy. Wood is the primary material used in Japanese architecture in
accordance with their pursuit of realizing nature in architecture, but the materiality
bounds the span. As a result, the idea of illusionary space and extension is crucial. To
bring this effect, emptiness is one of the main strategies used in Japanese architecture.121
First of all, by identifying the sliding doors, the floor planks, and the podium, which
present a rectangular containment that upholds the entire scene, one might recognize that
this event is perhaps taking place in a private zashiki, a room style popular in the Edo
period. Zashiki is one unit of the parlor that composes the entire complex of a traditional
Japanese house. In the room, the furnishing is eliminated to the minimalism.122 As one
could already see from the print, the impression of room's vastness is created — the first
signal of the resemblance to a stage setting — broadness and absence of objects that are
not relevant to the performance. Moreover, asymmetry also offers a notion that what is in
front is beyond one’s vision because one cannot foresee the patterns; one cannot see an
end to the configuration. As nature is not defined, there is no sense of completion and
definition of the room. The design of Japanese architecture suggests “more out of the
scene.”123 The print here also indicates an incompleteness, or rather, inability to finish. At
both ends of the print, we can perceive an abrupt cut. The spaciousness renders it
impossible to include every aspect into the triptych. The cropping sliding doors, the
unfinished lines of the floors, and the cut-off of the tsuitate and the podium all have
directed viewers’ eyes out of the print to an imaginary space. It renders a vibe that the
dance is taking place in an enclosed section, but the asymmetry breaks the left and right,
suggesting an illusionary expansion of the space. The print is like the eye of the audience

121
Ibid.
122
Ibid.
123
Ibid.

134
back then – it is only able to capture a snapshot, a finite view of a stage in the theatre.
The usual lack of furnishing here is compensated for by having the sliding doors fusuma
decoration, floor planks, a podium set, and a tsuitate at the back. These injections of
standardized shapes and sizes introduce the order that was previously mentioned to hold
the otherwise infinite asymmetry,124 dedicated to nature’s inherent order.
The fusuma and tsuitate both offer a direct depiction of nature, following the
Japanese regular intention to emulate natural scenes in architecture, and this intention is
even more explicit here. On the fusuma are pine trees on mountains. Dusk is strengthened
by the bokashi gradient, on top where the slight dark blue infiltrates downwards as night
falls. This natural design is something that would be applied in an actual theater setup to
recreate a dramatic scene on stage as if the dancers and audience are in the midst of the
pine trees, adding to space extension and also immersing them in the performance.
However, the sliding doors in themselves are partitions between spaces. They are an
opening to continue the space. That being said, the sliding doors not only hold the natural
background in order to echo the essence of the architectural philosophy but also hold the
dance performance: the doors are closed to seclude a space for the performance, in other
words, a theater stage.
Sometimes, sliding doors in a dwelling might be open to a garden, where now –
in this print – is a painting of pine trees. Including the plum tree on the tsuitate and
peonies on the side of the podium and over the bookstand, these plants are felicitous
symbols for different annual observances in Japan. Pine and plum trees are for the first
month of the new year. A Heian-period ritual, pulling up the roots of small pines
(komatsu) was an auspicious gesture to pray for long life, lengthening the year. Originally
a routine of the royalty gradually applied among the common people and ended a New
Year practice of all, placing a pair of small pines at the gate of the house (kadomatsu).125
The gate pine practice is somehow reproduced in this print by having pine trees on the
sliding “doors,” reflecting this private event of harugoma performance is indeed a
celebration of good fortune for the New Year following the observance, which is also
connected to the theater.
Kao-mise, the annual face-showing performance for Kabuki theater’s new cast of
actors, incorporated special New Year observances. On the first day of the New Year,
there would be an opening ceremony that featured New Year dances. Harugoma was on

124
Ibid.
125
Haruo Shirane. Japan and the Culture of the Four Seasons, Columbia University Press, p153-174, p.242.

135
the list, performed by young actors and accompanied by musicians. We almost see a
small-scale model of such a celebratory event in the triptych. After the theater
performance, actors would continue to make New Year calls at the teahouses, considered
a crucial component of Kabuki culture. These calls brought potential new economies to
the theater, but there was a factor of family tradition beyond generating economic
benefits.126 Kabuki actors behaved as a family, and as a unit, they shall make New Year
visits. It was the Confucian ideology of a society established around family relationships
manifested by the Kabuki world that every ceremonial observance was undertaken not
only in the usual sense of family but also in society as a whole.127 If we see that as an
upward transformation from family into society, then for this print, we can acknowledge
a harugoma dance performance in a zashiki, within a household, as an opposite yet
bearing the same essence. A theater in society is a theater to a family and vice versa.
Harugoma itself is indisputably an essential part of the Kabuki theater custom. Even
though the characters in the print are exclusively young women, it is the ukiyo-e
convention that any event might be portrayed as conducted by women, contributing to the
bijinga genre. If we continue to argue that the zashiki-stage is still too far away from that
of a theater, the teahouse calls will help justify the case. It is reasonable to assume that
the Kabuki actors would perform those merry dances when they paid visits. As a piece of
removable furniture in a zashiki, the podium could also be a temporary raised platform,
nothing challenging to set up in the teahouses for the visits of Kabuki actors. One more
detail in the print that can’t be missed is the lacquered stand on the podium that is used to
hold the joruri script. The joruri of harugoma is nothing new. There were theatrical
puppet plays in which harugoma was an event of the narrative. In 1782, at the kao-
mise128 play of a Tomimoto-style joruri — narrative singing with shamisen
accompaniment— the actors chanted a joruri piece called “Cheating in Love in
January,’’ subtitled Two Manzai Seduce with Erotic Words: The Flowery Phrases of a
Pair of Harugoma Performers.”129 In this dance drama, harugoma performers used the
props in the shape of horseheads that we spot in the print. Evidently, in a zashiki, as

126
Barbara E. Thornbury, THE CALENDAR OF KABUKI’ in ‘Sukeroku’s Double Identity: The Dramatic
Structure of Edo Kabuki,’ ” p 3–16. University of Michigan Press, 1982.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3998/mpub.18683.5.
127
Ibid.
128
Kao-mise or “face-showing performance” was an annual event to introduce a new cast of actors.
129
Gerald Groemer. “Portraits of Edo and Early Modern Japan: The Shogun’s Capital in Zuihitsu Writings,
1657–1855,” p. 282. Springer Singapore, 2019.

136
displayed in the print, we find almost the same crew of performers one would meet for
such a joruri play in a theater.
Zashiki itself, both physically and philosophically, is unto its one entirety,
separated from other adjacent neighboring rooms. The ceiling, hung wall, floor curves,
bottom rails of sliding partitions, and binding pattern of floor planks are independent,
even isolated, and exclusive to the zashiki they are located in. 130 It is a physical sense of
containment. It adds to the creation of a micro stage, which is independent on its own,
offering the audience everything solely about the performance. The fusuma, a portal to
views hidden behind it, is also like the wings of a theater stage. They conceal the
boundaries, which are the limits to the containment of a zashiki, like a theatre stage.131
Furthering the idea of extending the space, exactly like how the pine trees on the fusuma
function visually, they hide corners and borders of the stage to present the audience with
the best condition to imagine and be drawn into the show, to a world the performance
wants to construct. Therefore, it comes back to the primary Japanese philosophy of
rejecting the limits of the architectural space, which are initially produced by symmetry
but later resolved by asymmetry, in its greater representation, nature, and embracing the
infinite possibilities of it.
We should admit that carefully articulated asymmetry is expressed in the form of
architecture. And it is an image, a composition, an ukiyo-e print that Kunisada presents
us with. Looking into the interior of the print is looking into the interior of real
architecture. In the most Japanese sense, the works of architecture are determined to be a
creation on a two-dimensional surface. By obscuring the line between the dimensions,
Japanese artists and architects tend to cling to the visual and eyes rather than to the tactile
and body. When we see substantial architecture being transferred into a painterly image,
we can feast on all the senses with one glance. Then we could also let a grand theater
dwell in a private zashiki. It is nothing different than a group of people gathered together
to chant their praise of life and the New Year at any period of history.

130
Ramberg, Walter Dodd. "Some Aspects Of Japanese Architecture," p34-47. The MIT Press on behalf of
Perspecta, 1960. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1566890
131
Ibid.

137
 III. VISUAL CODES OF THE AUSPICIOUS SPRING
Carina Zhang
This triptych by Utagawa Kinusada from the series “During the Twelve Months”
is dedicated to the first month of the year and depicts the first dance of the New Year
(mōshun 孟春). The triptych consists of three vertical large format ōban prints are joined
together in one composition so that in the resulting image the width is larger than the
height. Thus, the triptych captures a wide interior space with three dominating figures
inside, one on each print. This essay explores the print by analyzing its depiction of
beauty, the decorative and symbolic function of patterning in dressing and staging, and
the relationship between the print’s formal aspects and Japanese music culture that
combines art, nature, and customs.

Reviewing the Details

On the very right panel, on a raised platform upholstered in scarlet carpet a
musician is playing shamisen and chanting as she sits on her knees in a position known as
seiza (正座) in front of the lectern. The side of the platform is adorned with roundels
formed by peonies and the karakusa – the so-called Chinese grass vine.132 Dressed in a
flower-patterned furisode, she is playing a shamisen and chanting. A makie bookrest is
placed in front of her, and behind her is a single panel screen tsuitate with the depiction
of blossoming plum trees. On the corner of the stage, a lidded ceramic cup marked by the
toshidama sign is placed.
Two beauties on the left, dressed in plover bird patterned furisode,133 are
performing a hobby horse dance on the wooden plank platform in front of the fusuma
(sliding doors) decorated with images of rolling hills grown with young pine trees. Both
dancers control the horse-head shaped puppet-like props by putting the left hand into the
horse head’s opening and using the right hand to grab a scarf-like rein attached to the
bridle on the horse-head puppet.134 The dancer on the right lifts her puppet high above her

132
“Twelve Months Series. The First Month: First Dance of the New Year.” National Diet Library Digital
Collection, 2021.
https://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1310170?tocOpened=1&itemId=info%3Andljp%2Fpid%2F1310170&__lan
g=en.
133
Library of Congress, Utagawa Toyokuni III, First Dancing Practice of the New Year. Japan, 1854.
https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_07357/?st=gallery.
134
Ibid.

138
head, tilting the puppet and swinging the rein-scarf to her right. The dancer on the left
squats on one knee and moves the horse's head face down.

Pattern as a Music-like Visual Element

A prominent feature of the print is its lush patterning based on natural elements.
The dressing presented in this performance is cohesive to the central theme of auspicious
beginning of the year. The female figures wear furisode, a long-sleeved kimono donned
on special events by children and unmarried young women.135 The square-cut design is an
essential feature of the kimono that makes it significantly different from the western
dress. While western apparel includes lines that follow the contour of the body, the
kimono's rectangular format emphasizes the surface of the dress instead of the shape of
the body beneath. As a result, the dress becomes a canvas for placing decorative
patterns.136

Cultural and Symbolic Significance Behind the Patterns

The function of the patterns is far more profound than merely decorative: the visual
rendering of the performance is a symphony of auspicious symbolism. Most of the designs
are abstract representations of nature and carry symbolic meanings connected to the New
Year and thus inviting good luck or, in other words, being auspicious. It is noticeable that
the symbolic messages come from people's careful observation of nature: plants' growth
patterns, water movement, and the seasonal behavior of creatures.
While chidori (plover bird) on the white stripes of the dancers’ garments
represents winter,137 it is shown next to the spirals on the dancers’ obi sashes that
represent the flowing water.138 Chidori (plover or (rarely) sanderlings) are small birds
that live in flocks near water. Since the bird cry “chiyo” is a homonym for chiyo 千代'
meaning "1000 generations," it has become an auspicious symbol associated with
longevity. Such association of chidori with long life can be found in the Japanese
classical poetry anthology Kokinwakashū 古今和歌集 (early 10c) and was particularly
well-known in waka 和歌 poems written during the Heian and Kamakura periods. The

135
“Furisode.” The Art Institute of Chicago, 2022. https://www.artic.edu/artworks/150739/furisode.
136
Nomura, Shojiro, Tsutomu Ema. Japanese Kimono Designs. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 2006, 1-2
137
“National Diet Library Digital Collection, 2021.
https://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1310170?tocOpened=1&itemId=info%3Andljp%2Fpid%2F1310170&__lan
g=en.
138
Ibid.

139
chidori motif can be found in varied media such as textiles, lacquer, metalwork, and
paper design, from the 10th century onward. It was often transformed into an almost
abstract pictorial figure during the Momoyama and early Edo periods. The combination
of the plover bird’s motif and the waves or sand beaches (suhama 州浜) is popular: the
water where birds live is flowing, conveying spring’s coming.139
The red undergarments are not left blank: they have a repeating six-sided
geometric design asa-no-ha (hemp-leaf) pattern. This design has six identical diamonds
arranged around a central point. Although used throughout ancient Asia, its resemblance
to the hemp plant is only recognized in Japan. The asa-no-ha is found on the clothing of
Buddhist statuary of the Heian through Muromachi periods. This design was particularly
popular during the Edo period, when it was promoted by a Kabuki Theater actor, Iwai
Hanshirō 岩井半四郎 (1776-1847). Since the hemp plant grows vigorously, fast, and
straight, it often was used in children's garments to encourage their healthy growth. Asa-
no-ha design’s simplicity enables various interpretations, making it continuously popular.
In the applied arts it was used in woodworking, weaving, papermaking, and dyeing. 140
On the right panel, the beauty’s sleeves have a pattern of tree peonies that is
known as the “King of Flowers,” symbolizing good fortune, courage, and glory. 141 Such
a motif also appears on the makie bookrest and the side of the stage. What’s different is
that the peonies are now interlocked with karakusa. The combination of peonies and
karakusa is called botan karakusa 牡丹唐草. It appears on stone sculpture and crafts of
Chinese Tang dynasty, and lacquerware, textiles, and ceramics of Song dynasty. Before
coming to Japan, the peony pattern was popular for it carries prosperous meaning. The
motif quickly spread in popularity and generated various transforms during the Heian and
Kamakura periods after its introduction to Japan.142
As a species with a strong life force, the evergreen pine trees in the background
are symbols of prosperity and longevity.143

139
“Chidori 千鳥.” 渥美財団. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. Accessed April 23, 2022.
http://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/c/chidori.htm.
140
“Asa-No-Ha 麻の葉.” 渥美財団. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. Accessed April 23,
2022. https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/a/asanoha.htm.
141
Jez. “Flower Symbolism in Japanese Culture: Japanese Flowers.” The Japanese Shop, March 16, 2022.
https://www.thejapaneseshop.co.uk/blog/flower-symbolism-japanese-culture/.
142
“Botan Karakusa 牡丹唐草.” 渥美財団. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. Accessed April
23, 2022. https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/b/botankarakusa.htm.
143
“Hanging Scroll; Painting: British Museum.” The British Museum. Accessed April 2, 2022.
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1913-0501-0-315.

140
 Another cold-resistant plant, ume (Japanese plum), is represented in full blossom
on the single panel partition behind the musician – to the right of the fusuma sliding
walls. People in Japan celebrate the New Year with ume as it is the flower blossoms in
the coldest season.144 Its symbolic meaning derives from Chinese culture, in which the
plum has long been a symbol of ideal Confucian values. The knobby trunk and delicate
flowers that bloom during the coldest time of the year carry meanings of longevity and
renewal amid transience for Chinese and Japanese literati. As a result, the plum is
included among the saikan sanyuu 歳寒三友 – three friends of wintry seasons, and the
shikunshi 四君子- four gentlemen.145
On the musician’s kimono there is also a flower cart known in Japanese as hana-
guruma (花車文). The cart laden with bouquets of flowers symbolizes abundance, and
happiness.146
Other less apparent symbols unfold as we gradually decode the print in a larger
social and cultural context. The concentric circles and semicircles of golden-yellow
against the black of the dancers’ obi sashes are known as kanze-mizu water pattern
associated with the Kanze School of Noh performers.147
Additionally, perhaps the lucky number "3" in Japanese culture is hidden in the
placement of visual elements in this print. The image consists of three panels and three
figures from a general view. The background door shows three handles in minor details,
and the musical instrument shamisen consists of three strings. Number "3" represents
creation, different time stages (past, present, and future), and the tertiary relationship
between body, mind, and spirit. In verbal counting, the number "3" is pronounced as
"mitsu”, which sounds similar to the word “蜜” (honey), a metaphor for prosperity. 148
While each pattern is made of identifiable icons such as birds and flowers, when
condensed together, they create a visual effect quite similar to that present in western arts.
The variety of hues and values also create different textures on the surface. While
some patterns are purposefully repetitive, there are variations in the color and direction of

144
Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_07357/?st=gallery.
145
“Bokubai 墨梅.” 渥美財団. Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. Accessed April 23, 2022.
https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/deta/b/bokubai.htm.
146
“Passing Rose & Hanaguruma.” https://www.lawa.org/art-program/past-exhibits/2019/passing-
rose#:~:text=Hanaguruma%20is%20a%20Japanese%20word,emblem%20in%20bridal%20kimono%20patter
ns.
147
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/65617 .
148
Tanuki. “Unlucky and Lucky Numbers in Japan.” https://wanderingtanuki.com/unlucky-and-lucky-
numbers-in-japan/.

141
the single component of patterns. The circular flower arrangements that decorate the side
of the musician’s stage rhythmically vary in color temperatures. Altogether, the repetition
and variation of patterns are strategically used to enhance the musical quality of visual
elements.
The triptych conveys the integration of listening and seeing: Japanese music
reaches perfection when complete with visual aspects.149 The coherent theme of the dress,
interior, and dance show the performers’ careful consideration of the visual companion of
the music. Correspondingly, music functions as an essential accompaniment or
endorsement of beauty in Japanese visual culture.150
Both the formal and symbolic aspects of the triptych show another critical
characteristic of Japanese culture: the harmonious connection between humans and
nature. For example, the distinction between interior and exterior is eliminated by
presenting natural motifs in the room. People's experience of nature also inspires the
pattern designs on costumes and the auspicious meanings attached to them.151 From the
cultural symbols, we see people's desire to bring certain perspicuous spring features, such
as newness, strength, and flourishing, to their lives. Just as Toyokuni III valued the
imperfections of the beauty’ manner and put them into the print’s design, musicians in
the Edo period added natural sounds to their musical compositions. The shamisen
presented in this print is a perfect example of an instrument that produces sound. There's
no strict difference between natural and musical sounds in the Japanese music sense. 152
The wooden floor in the print also triggers the viewer’s imagination of hearing the
dancers’ feet stepping, producing musical sounds through dancing.
In a nutshell, this triptych's visual and musical aspect is complementary. The
fondness for nature is shown in the design and the lively depiction of the figures
according to their individual characteristics. Patterns, as visual codes, carry both
decorative values and the optimistic hopes of people. Nature, visual elements, music, and
people are aesthetically and culturally interconnected. The print celebrates the idea of
integrating art, nature, and life.

149
Tsuge, Gen’ichi. “Raiment of Traditional Japanese Musicians – Its Social and Musical Significance.” The
World of Music 25, no. 1 (1983): 55–69. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43560877.
150
Shephard, Tim, and Anne Leonard. The Routledge Companion to Music and Visual Culture. Routledge.
Accessed April 2, 2022, 124.
151
Yuriko Saito “The Japanese Appreciation of Nature”, The British Journal of Aesthetics,
Volume 25, Issue 3, SUMMER 1985, 239, https://doi.org/10.1093/bjaesthetics/25.3.239.
152
Kikkawa Eishi (1987) The musical sense of the Japanese, Contemporary Music Review, 1:2,
85-94, DOI:10.1080/07494468400640271

142
IV. CONTEXT/CONTENT: HARUGOMA DANCE & NEW YEAR OBSERVANCES
Hanna Suros; Roye Zhang

The Pony Dance and its Seasonal Significance

Hanna Suros
The “harugoma” (spring pony) dance depicted in the print is one performed for
the New Year which coincides with spring according to the lunisolar calendar.153 The
puppets that are used refer to young horses who have been in shelter for the winter and
are free for the first time in their life when spring comes around. White horses
specifically were thought to get rid of bad spirits through an observance on the seventh
day of the first month where the emperor would be presented with a white horse.154
Traditionally, harugoma performers would go door to door during the New Year season
with horse props either placed on their hands or around their waist, offering a ceremonial
performance to invoke good fortune for the rest of the year. This dance became very
popular and well known. It even featured in a kabuki play which tells the tale of the Soga
Brothers where they disguise themselves as harugoma performers to be able to carry out
the revenge.155 This performance at the beginning of the play serves as a prayer for the
brothers’ success in their mission. In the kabuki calendar during the opening of the new
season as well as the spring opening which begins the first month of the New Year the
kao-mise program (meaning “face-showing” and serving for introduction of a new cast
of actors for the season), includes dance-dramas which show a more elevated and
narrative version of the street performance.156 Kabuki actors would celebrate the new
year with observances and traditions as a group and would perform harugoma as well as
other New Year dances with a musical accompaniment. They would also perform these
ceremonies in tea houses after their own celebrations, which may be where the action
portrayed on this print takes place as this might be suggested due to the makeshift stage
and screens with seasonal decor. Usually, these performers would not be women,
however it is common for ukiyo-e to represent these roles taken by beautiful women thus
categorizing such depictions as works of the bijinga genre.

153
Shirane, Haruo. Japan and the Culture of the Four Seasons. Columbia University Press, 2012, p153-174.
154
Ibid., p.242.
155
Thornbury, Barbara E. “THE CALENDAR OF KABUKI” in Sukeroku’s Double Identity: The Dramatic
Structure of Edo Kabuki, p 3–16. University of Michigan Press, 1982.
156
Ibid

143
The Pines and the New Year
Hanna Suros
During the Edo Period it became a custom for wealthier and upper-class families
to hang scrolls according to the month and the season. For the first month it was common
to include pine trees, plum trees, and bamboo, which are all included in the print. The
plum tree is one that celebrates the end of winter, the waiting of spring, and hope for
what is to come. It blossoms slowly instead of all at once. The plum tree behind the
shamisen player is shown fully in bloom therefore it is clear that spring has arrived.
During the Heian period (8th – 12th cc.) it became a ritual to pull up small pines and
collect seeds during the Day of the Rat, which would be the seventh day in the first
month of the year.157 Though at first this ritual was practiced only within the imperial
court it eventually spread to commoners which began the New Year Observance by
placing two pines at the entrance of one's house known as the gate pines (kadomatsu).158
Pine was not only associated with luck but also immortality and endurance because of
how the plant thrives during the harsh month of winter. Though these plants are usually
depicted in winter scenes in Japanese art, there are no signs of snow which signifies the
end of this season and the start of a new one.

Toyokuni iii’s Harugoma Triptych – Further Comments on Details

Roye Zhang
Utagawa Kunisada’s “First Dance of the New Year” is a triptych from the series
“During the Twelve Months.” The name of the series is written in the cartouche on the
top left corner of the print. The shape of this cartouche is called toshidama. It consists of
a hollow circle with abstract and solidly colored element on the top right.159 Derived from
the cursive form of the character for the “year” and meaning “year’s jewel,” this round
shape with a distinctive thickening of the frame on one side was considered an auspicious
symbol and became an emblem of the Utagawa School of ukiyo-e artists. Here the red
field with the text is surrounded with the black frame.
The texts inside of the cartouche provide context of the image portrayed by this
print. Along with the title of the series in the center of the cartouche, on the right it says

157
Shirane, Haruo. Japan and the Culture of the Four Seasons. Annual Observances, Famous Places, and
Entertainment,” p153-174.
158
Ibid., 156
159
Graebner, Horst. “Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III) Signatures and Seals.” The Utagawa Kunisada
(Toyokuni III) - Project, 2021.

144
mōshun which translates to the beginning of spring/the first month; on the left the
inscription reads odorizome meaning the first dance.
The triptych includes illustrations of three beauties participating in the scene.
Each figure occupies a panel of the triptych. Therefore, every panel is a complete image
with a main figure in the center of the corresponding panel. The image reads from right to
left according to the Japanese writing system. The leftmost panel presents a woman
playing a shamisen, a traditional Japanese string instrument. The shamisen player sits on
the top of a raised platform. The front side of the platform is printed with circular flower
motifs. The platform is framed with black-lacquer edges, and its top is upholstered with
scarlet carpet creating a strong contrast between cold and warm tones. Each print has a
group of five seals at the bottom. On the top of the platform, a music stand, and a lidded
cup are placed in front of the shamisen performer. The music stand is lacquered in black
with bright golden floral motifs along with two brown tassels hanging from its back. A
small cup printed with a blue circular toshidama sign is placed next to the stand. The
main figure of the rightmost panel gracefully sits behind the music stand holding her
shamisen. The fingers of her left hand elegantly press the strings on the shamisen’s neck.
The performer slightly turns her face to the left of the print, and her eyes look down,
aiming at the sheets placed on the top of the bookstand. A one-panel partitioning screen
tsuitate decorated with a depiction of bokumai, an ink plum tree, surrounded by small cut
golden squares is placed behind the shamisen performer.
Moving on to the middle and rightmost panels, two beauties are dancing to the
melody of shamisen. The dancer in the middle panel stands on the stage with one foot off
the ground lifting the bottom of her garment. Both of her hands are up in the air.
Meanwhile, the dancer in the right panel is in a half-kneeling position that juxtaposes
with the other dancer to create a dynamic composition. The dancers are attired in the
same garments. The outer garment of each dancer consists of purple and white stripes
with bird motifs printed diagonally. This bird pattern appearing against the organic shape
of the garment adds visual tension. Under the outer swinging-sleeved kimono called
furisode worn by the young, the lining reveals its red and white geometric motifs of
stylized hemp leaves. Tightening the garment altogether, a black waistband with golden
circular motifs of whirlpools along with a red rope and yellow textile wraps around
dancers’ waist. The dancers wear headscarves that match the color of their robes, and
their hair is embellished with blue artificial hydrangeas, pink paper, and what appears to
be a rolled straw mat to support the bun. Both of the dancers’ left hands are dressed in a

145
horse-head puppet. The puppets present the head of a black and white horse; its black
mane is tied into small “ponytails” straight from the top of its head down to the neck.
Each horse puppet wears a yellow and red harness with a gilt plate near its mouth. A
piece of flowy brown textile with white stripes on one end is connected to the harness of
each horse puppet. The brown fabric pieces are held in the right hands of the dancers. The
horse puppet also wears a piece of cloth around the neck trimmed with small gold jingle
bells. The color and the motif of the cloth on the puppet matches the lining of the furisode
of the dancers.
This scene depicted by Utagawa Kunisada is an artistic representation of the
traditional Japanese New Year amusement called, harugoma, which literally translates to
“spring pony.” Harugoma is celebrated on January 14th of each year,160 and the spirit of
harugoma is to wish for health and prosperity in the following year.161 In the print, the
harugoma performers are dancing on a light-yellow stage in front of the fusuma sliding
door. According to paper Sukeroku’s Double Deity by Dr. Barbara Tornbury, a researcher
in Japanese language and studies, harugoma is a part of the New Year observances hosted
by theaters to kick off the spring season as the theater production opens the day after the
harugoma ceremony, 15th day of the first month.162 Harugoma dances are performed by
young actors and musicians wearing formal dresses for the ceremonial event163. Therefore,
the setting for the print designed by Kunisada is perhaps a depiction of harugoma staged in
a theater for entertainment purposes. The most playful element of the image is the horse
puppet worn by the dancers. The figures of horses displayed in the print have significant
meaning in Japanese religion and traditional culture. The horses in harugoma dances
represent the horses that are ridden by Japanese deities, kami.164 The horse puppets consist
of two baskets: the head and the tail.165 The head basket as well as the horse mane of the
puppet are made of Japanese paper, and the facial features of the horse, such as eyes and
nose, are painted onto the paper.166 A rein made of a scarf is attached to the head basket of
the horse puppet and held by the dancer in Kunisada’s print.

160
Moriarty, Elizabeth. “The Communitarian Aspect of Shinto Matsuri.” Asian Folklore Studies 31, no. 2
(1972): 107. https://doi.org/10.2307/1177490.
161
The Library of Congress. “Twelve Months by Toyokuni: First Dancing Practice of the New Year.”
https://www.loc.gov/item/2021668771/.
162 Thornbury, Barbara E. “THE CALENDAR OF KABUKI.” In Sukeroku’s Double Identity: The Dramatic

Structure of Edo Kabuki, 8. University of Michigan Press, 1982.

163 Thornbury, “THE CALENDAR OF KABUKI”, 8.
164 Moriarty, “The Communitarian Aspect of Shinto Matsuri”, 107.
165
Ibid., 109.
166 Ibid.

146
 V. CLOSING REMARKS
Yisheng Yuan, Roye Zhang
Lastly, in each panel, five seal prints reveal administrative details. The seal that
says “寅四” shows the time of the print production. The character “寅” indicates the year
of the tiger and “四,” the fourth month. The circular seal with the character “改,”
“aratame,” or “examined” is the censorship seal indicating that this is an officially
examined print. The line shape of an ivy leaf under a triple-peaked mountain and a black
solid dot under the central peak is the seal of the publisher Tsutaya Kichizō. Lastly, the
yellow rectangle that says “彫工庄治” (horikō Shōji) means “carver Shōji,” a credit to
the block carver. Another smaller toshidama cartouche of elongated shape filled with
light red color and placed among the technical seals bears the inscription “Toyokuni-ga”
(豊国画), picture by Toyokuni. One could think that implied is artist Toyokuni I. Still, it
was clear to his contemporaries that it was a work by Toyokuni III, one of Toyokuni I’s
most talented students. Extended three-panel compositions, visual complexity, and
intensity of color scheme were features characteristic of Toyokuni III. Additionally,
unlike Toyokuni I or Toyokuni II, Toyokuni III often enclosed his signature in the
toshidama cartouche.
Ultimately, in this triptych, Kunisada depicts a lively scene of the new year
celebration with three elegant beauties. Paying full attention to the details, Kunisada not
only portrayed three vivid and graceful performers but also introduced the Edo culture to
the modern viewers through the presentation of interior design, fashion, and ceremonial
rituals. This print is both an artistic expression of the traditional culture and custom and
also an appreciation of the material world where common people are able to enjoy art and
music.

147
 Bibliography
Deitz, Paula. “Plum Blossoms: The Third Friend of Winter.” SiteLINES: A
Journal of Place 4, no. 1 (2008): 3–5. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24889319.
Graebner, Horst. “Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III) Signatures and Seals.” The
Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III) - Project, 2021.
Groemer, Gerald. “Portraits of Edo and Early Modern Japan: The Shogun’s
Capital in Zuihitsu Writings, 1657–1855,” p. 282. Springer Singapore, 2019.
Groemer, Gerald. “Who Benefits? Religious Practice, Blind Women ‘(Goze),
Harugoma,’ and ‘Manzai.’” Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 41, no. 2
(2014): 347–86. http://www.jstor.org/stable/43233883.
JAANUS – Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System
https://www.aisf.or.jp/~jaanus/ – the terms: asa-no-ha, bokubai, botan-
karakusa, chidori
Jez. “Flower Symbolism in Japanese Culture.”
https://www.thejapaneseshop.co.uk/blog/flower-symbolism-japanese-culture/.
Kikkawa Eishi (1987) The musical sense of the Japanese, Contemporary Music Review,
1:2, 85-94,
The Library of Congress. “Twelve Months by Toyokuni: First Dancing Practice of the
New Year.” https://www.loc.gov/item/2021668771/.
Moriarty, Elizabeth. “The Communitarian Aspect of Shinto Matsuri.” Asian Folklore
Studies 31, no. 2 (1972): 107.
National Diet Library Digital Collection, 2021. “Twelve Months Series. The First Month:
First Dance of the New Year.”
https://dl.ndl.go.jp/info:ndljp/pid/1310170?tocOpened=1&itemId=info%3Andlj
p%2Fpid%2F1310170&__lang=en.
Nomura, Shojiro, and Tsutomu Ema. Japanese Kimono Designs. Mineola, NY: Dover
Publications, 2006, 1-2
Ramberg, Walter Dodd. "Some Aspects Of Japanese Architecture," p34-47. The MIT
Press on behalf of Perspecta, 1960. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1566890
Shirane, Haruo. “Japan And the Culture Of the Four Seasons,” Columbia University Press,
NY, 2013.
Shephard, Tim, and Anne Leonard. The Routledge Companion to Music and Visual
Culture. Routledge.. https://www.routledge.com/The-Routledge-Companion-to-
Music-and-Visual-Culture/Shephard-Leonard/p/book/9780415629256.
Tanuki. “Unlucky and Lucky Numbers in Japan.” wanderingtanuki, February 6, 2022.
https://wanderingtanuki.com/unlucky-and-lucky-numbers-in-japan/.
The Art Institute of Chicago, 2022. “Furisode.”
https://www.artic.edu/artworks/150739/furisode.
Thornbury, Barbara E. “ ‘THE CALENDAR OF KABUKI’ in ‘Sukeroku’s Double
Identity: The Dramatic Structure of Edo Kabuki,’ ” p 3–16. University of
Michigan Press, 1982. http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.3998/mpub.18683.5.
Tsuge, Gen’ichi. “Raiment of Traditional Japanese Musicians – Its Social and Musical
Significance.” The World of Music 25, no. 1 (1983): 55–69.
Utagawa, Toyokuni, Artist. Twelve Months by Toyokuni: First Dancing Practice of the
New Year. https://www.loc.gov/resource/gdcwdl.wdl_07357/?st=gallery.
World Kigo Database, August 2006. “Horse (UMA).”
https://worldkigo2005.blogspot.com/2006/08/horse-uma.html.
Yuriko Saito “The Japanese Appreciation of Nature”, The British Journal of Aesthetics,
Volume 25, Issue 3, SUMMER 1985.

148
149
Utagawa Toyokuni II (Toyoshige), 1777-1835. Signed: Gosotei Toyokuni (後素亭豊国画)
Inset: (koma-e コマ絵) by Utagawa Kunihiro 国弘, student of Utagawa Toyokuni II.
Elegant Figures of the East <Aligned with > Twelve Signs of Zodiac: Snake (Tsuchinoto).
1845 – Year of the Snake
RISD. Bequest of Isaac C. Bates, 13.1409

150
 On Culture Codes of Toyokuni II’s
Elegant Figures of the East, Twelve Signs of Zodiac: Snake
Alex (Jihao) Zhu

Elegant Figures of the East <aligned with > Twelve Signs of Zodiac: Snake is
one of the ukiyo-e prints from the series Elegant Figures of the East <Aligned with >
Twelve Signs of Zodiac designed by Utagawa Toyokuni II (1777–1835), an ukiyo-e
painter and print artist. He was a pupil of Toyokuni I and his adopted son. After the
latter’s death in 1826, Toyoshige formally became the head of the school and started
signing his work as Toyokuni II. Toyokuni II is known for prints of actors and beautiful
women – bijin (美人)167.
Produced around 1843-1847, Elegant figures of the East, twelve signs of zodiac:
Snake is a 15 by 10 inches print that depicts a beautiful young lady and contains a
separate frame with the illustration of a snake in wisteria branches. The half-length
portrait of a beautiful young lady takes most of the lower-left part of the print. She is
dressed in three layers of kimono (着物).168 The outside kimono is adorned with a pattern
of multiple blue clematis flowers, tessenka (鉄線花)169 in Japanese, a symbol of sweet
bondage and integrity.

Tessenka (鉄線花) – clematis flower, common decorative motif in Japanese art.

This flower pattern is placed against the background of the purple and light orange arare-
ko-mon (霰小紋)170 or the hail pattern, which is the design of irregular small and large
dots as if in a shower of hail. The middle blue layer visible at the collar opening is
adorned with the pattern of white kōmori (蝙蝠) – a bat that is a widespread symbol of
auspiciousness and prosperity. The innermost layer of clothes bears the pattern of
sakuragawa (桜川)171; this pattern consists of yellow sakura flowers, symbolizing spring,

167
A Japanese term which literally means “a beautiful person”
168
A traditional Japanese garment and the national dress of Japan.
169
Stands for Clematis florida (Asian Virginsbower). They have broad leaves and achene.
170
The design of irregular small and large dots as if in a shower of hail.
171
The pattern of sakura (cherry blossoms) floating in running water.

151
softness, kindness, and acceptance of the transience of beauty. Shown floating on top of
the blue-dyed fabric with the white whirls of the pattern of kawa (river, stream), it
appears as symbol of continuity and future.

Left. Arare-komon (霰小紋) – the hail pattern. Center: kōmori (蝙蝠) – a bat Right: sakura
flowers in water.

In addition to the exquisite and elegant clothing, the hairdo of the lady in the
print is in beautiful traditional Japanese nihongami style (日本髪). Specifically, her
hairdo here is yuiwata (結綿)172 style with silk crepe fabric wrapped around the chignon.
This was a popular hairstyle for single females in the Edo-era.
The beautiful lady is looking down in the lower-right direction, adjusting – with
left hand – the nail-shaped picks tsume (爪)173 on her right hand. The players of koto (箏),
the horizontal harp, played with tsume picks that they attached to the thumb, the index
finger, and the middle finger – this is what the beautiful musician is shown doing on the
print considered. Economic as the image is, there is still another detail indicating that the
woman is a koto player. With the visual hint on the bottom right corner–a large black
rectangular area which is a representation of a typical black lacquer koto case, it can be
inferred that the young female is a koto player. Most likely, she is sitting and preparing
for the performance.
Above the beautiful musician, at the top-right corner, in the blue frame with
white whirlpool design of uzumaki-mon (渦巻文)174, is an inset, also known as koma-e
(コマ絵). Within this inset, a yellow snake climbing over the vines and among the
clusters of blue-and-green fuji (藤)–Japanese wisteria, a seasonal plant that is associated
with the spring. This inset is created by Utagawa Kunihiro (1816-1835), student of
Utagawa Toyokuni II. Kunihiro’s signature can be found at the right edge of the inset
within the frame.

172
A hairstyle from the latter half of the Edo period; in it, the hair is wrapped around with a cloth made of
chirimen (縮緬) silk crepe fabric.
173
The nail-shaped picks for playing the Koto–Japanese zither.
174
Whirlpool pattern, symbol of life and energy.

152
 Besides the two dominant visual components, there are many other visual
elements that introduce important information. Right above the black shape of the koto
case are various markings associated with the print’s production. There is the artist’s
signature: Gosotei Toyokuni (後素亭豊国画). There is also a round censorship seal
kiwame (極) and the publisher seal Sen’ichi (泉市) in an elongated rectangle.
On the top left corner of the print next to the abovementioned inset with the
snake is the title of the print. It consists of three inscriptions, seven characters altogether.
Each inscription is surrounded by the decorative frame of toshidama (年玉)175 cartouche.
From right to left, these three cartouches read “Elegance,” “Eastern figure” (meaning,
chic of the capital city which was called “Eastern Capital”), and “Twelve Signs of
Zodiac”.
This incredibly delicate print not only vividly depicted a graceful female
musician, but also transmitted crucial cultural references. Originating from China, the
twelve signs of zodiac represent a traditional classification scheme based on the lunar
calendar that assigns an animal and its reputed attributes to each year in a repeating
twelve-year cycle. The zodiac traditionally begins with the sign of the Rat, followed by
Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. As the
Chinese zodiac is derived according to the ancient Wuxing (五行) theory, 176 every sign is
associated with five elements with relations, among those elements. These relations are
that of interpolation, interaction, over-action, and counteraction. They are believed to be
the common law of motions and changes of creatures in the universe. Different people
born under each animal sign supposedly have different personalities, and practitioners of
Chinese astrology consult such traditional details and compatibilities to offer putative
guidance in life or for love and marriage. Specifically, snake worship in China has a long
history and rich connotations. In Chinese mythology, the creator of humans – Nü Wa (女
娲) and the creator of the heaven and earth – Pan Gu (盘古) all have the body in the
shape of snake. The dragon, which is the Chinese nation’s sacred symbol, is formed by
the sanctification of the snake in Xia Dynasty (ca. 2070-1600 BCE), the first dynasty in
the entire Chinese history.177 On the other hand, in ancient Japan, as in most primitive

175
The trademark of Utagawa school. This is a symbol of a New Year gift, and its shape is derived from the
cursive form of the character for “year” - toshi.
176
Usually translated as Five Phases, is a fivefold conceptual scheme that many traditional Chinese fields
used to explain a wide array of phenomena, from cosmic cycles to the interaction between internal organs,
and from the succession of political regimes to the properties of medicinal drugs.
177
Liu, Jixing. “The Cultural Code of the Snake Zodiac Sign.” Shanghai Enterprise, no. 3 (March 2013): 91.

153
societies, beliefs regarding the potencies of the snake (hebi) evolved indigenously. Then,
with the influx of Chinese culture, more complex views of the snake were adopted, and
the Japanese elaborated on these, further enriching their storehouse of beliefs concerning
the serpent. 178 In Japan, snakes have been revered as a god, a messenger of a god, or a
creature that brings a divine curse when a snake is harmed, or a particular natural site is
disturbed. These strong beliefs have discouraged people from harming snakes and
disturbing certain habitats associated with a snake god. It is noteworthy that this print was
published in the Year of the Snake, 1845.
The Chinese and Japanese cultural associations with the snake were further
enriched with development during the Edo period of the cult of Seven Gods of Good
Fortune (Shichifukujin), one of whom was a modification of the Indian Goddess
Sarasvati, Benzaiten. Benzaiten was revered as a deity of “everything that flows,” first of
all music and water, knowledge, and good luck. Her association with water accounts for
her being paired in Japanese mythology with a snake-bodied Shinto deity. Benzaiten was
extremely popular in Japan. Numerous temples were dedicated to her, and she was often
depicted as a beautiful woman playing a string instrument and an implication of a snake’s
presence. In the spirit of pleasure-loving Edo period culture, Utagawa Toyokuni II
depicted this young lady as a personification of Benzaiten. Shown as a musician, she is
divinely beautiful, and the snake is included in the composition in a smart way. What’s
noteworthy is that instead of representing a timeless deity, the artist shows the goddess as
an icon of contemporary fashions, including the skill of the koto playing. Music skills
were paramount in the art loving Edo society

Bibliograhy:
Baird, Merrily, Symbols of Japan, Rizzoli International Publications, New York,
NY, 2001
Liu, Jixing. “The Cultural Code of the Snake Zodiac Sign.” Shanghai Enterprise,
no. 3 (March 2013):
Malm, William, Japanese Music and Musical Instruments, Charles E. Tuttle
Company. Rutland, Vermont, Tokyo, Japan. 1959
Newland, Amy Reigle, Ed. The Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Woodblock
Prints. Hotei Publishing, Amsterdam, 2004.
Prints of Japan, website, https://printsofjapan.wordpress.com/?s=benzaiten

178
Merrily Baird, Symbols of Japan, Rizzoli International Publications, New York, NY, 2001, p.161

154
155
Utagawa Toyokuni II (Toyoshige), 1777-1835.
Benzaiten of the Shinobazu pond, first Day of the Serpent.
Publisher: Nishimura Yohachi. 1820s.
RISD. Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke, 20.1162.

156
Benzaiten of the Shinobazu Pond, the First day of the Serpent
Nina Hong
Two beautiful and stylish women, with complex hairdos and wearing ornate
garments. appear to be at a party at a restaurant. They are on the second-floor gallery
overlooking a pond with a bridge and mountains in the distance. One woman is standing
while the other is sitting on the floor and holding a shamisen – three-stringed lute-like
instrument. These women are depicted on a polychrome woodblock print nishiki-e by an
ukiyo-e print artist Toyokuni II. His signature together with the censorship seal and the
mark of the publishing house are seen in the right lower corner of the composition. This
artist will be briefly introduced below. In the upper right part of the print there is a title
cartouche that says: Benzaiten of the Shinobazu Pond, the First day of the Serpent. The
title defines the occasion for celebration and the place of the event. Celebrated is the first
day of the serpent which is closely related to Benzaiten, goddess of music and
knowledge, water, and fortune – of all that flows.179 The print from the collection of the
RISD Museum is only a righthand panel of a triptych, but it served as a gateway for an
in-depth discussion of a very important seasonal event in Edo period Japan. The essay
will consider the entire tripartite composition.

Utagawa Toyokuni II (Toyoshige, 1777-1835). Picture of Benzaiten of the Shinobazu Pond, First
Day of the Serpent (Shinobazu Benzaiten Hatsu-mi no zu). Gallery Ōno, blog.180

179
Further discussed in Baidurjya Madhav’s paper Exploring Benzaiten, in this volume
180
For the image see Gallery Ōno, blog: https://www.galleryonoblog.com/2018/08/blog-post_56.html

157
 Observing the triptych right to left, there are a total of six women, two in each
panel. The right panel depicts one woman standing and one woman sitting. With closer
inspection, you will notice a toothpick in her mouth as she leans towards the women in
the middle of the whole piece. The woman who is sitting has a variety of objects
surrounding her. She has an elongated teapot most likely for sake or another alcoholic
beverage, a parcel of tissue paper, a shamisen and plectrum, and an amulet. All of these
items contribute to the atmosphere of celebration. The instrument suggests that this
woman has advanced music skills.
The panel in the middle seems to be the central focus as women of both sides
lean towards the middle panel. The middle panel is the densest in the number of objects
depicted. It includes figures of two more women, a table filled/topped with many dishes,
and rather a packed landscape. Let’s first look at the table. Based on famous celebratory
foods, it can be speculated that one dish is chirashi-zushi and another whole cooked red
sea bream. Chirashi-zushi or “scattered sushi” in English is a common dish served on the
Doll’s Festival. Chirashi-zushi include purposeful ingredients such as: shrimp, lotus root,
and beans. The shape of the shrimp symbolizes longevity and good health while the red is
meant to ward off evil. The holes of the lotus root are said to have a ‘good outlook’ and
good foresight of the future. Beans are called ‘mame’ which can also mean “considerate”.
By eating the beans, girls are supposed to grow up with a good personality.181 As for the
tai, the red sea bream, its name rhymes with the expression medetai, meaning “happy.”
The vivid red color of the fish and its beautiful shape are meant to bring good luck to the
participants of the celebration.182
Next to the table, on the left, is a small bowl with three floating cups. This basin
is called a haisen. The insufficiency of cups is purposeful as they are meant for sharing.
Drinking from the same cup was common as it was believed to create unity, mutual
understanding, and closeness among members. The exchange of sake cups was called
kenshū. The presence of sake plays an important role in the celebration as it contributes to
the joyous atmosphere at the event.
The left panel represents two waitresses. They are wearing matching aprons with
either a cherry blossom or some sort of five petaled flower. One is bringing in more food
as she enters carrying the tray with dishes, the other is kneeling as she offers smoking

181
Omura, Yuto. "Chirashizushi (Scattered Sushi Bowl) - Sudachi Recipes". Sudachi Recipes.
182
"Red Sea Bream | Highlighted Japanese Ingredients - Japanese Agriculture, Forestry, Fisheries and Food -
Japan External Trade Organization". 2022.

158
accessories. This smoking set is called a tabakobon. It traditionally features a hi-ire, a
small vessel to hold charcoal for lighting the pipe, and a haifuki, an ashtray that is usually
tubular and made out of bamboo. These women are going to smoke kiseru pipes. The
stem of the kiseru smoking pipes were made of bamboo while for the mouthpiece and the
tobacco cup metals were used, such as brass or silver. Kiseru’s length measured around 8
to 10 inches. This scene depicts the moment that can be described with the term ippuku-
suru meaning relax and “have a puff.”183 Guests would be offered the tabakobon before
tea, becoming a custom and connecting to Japanese culture. Smoking among women
during the Edo period was quite common and fashionable for social events. 184
All women sport hairstyles of the chignon type and are wearing layered patterned
kimonos with large and ornate obi sashes. The woman on the right wears a yoko-hyogo
hairstyle or a “sideways- hyogo”, where the hair is split into two buns that represent the
wings of a butterfly. The musician is wearing a kirimaemage. This print shows traditional
Edo period hair decorations – kanzashi, or an ornate two prong hairpin, kōgai or a solid
bar-type piece that holds the hair up, and kushi, a comb.
All women are fashionably dressed. Many are wearing textiles in checks and
stripes which was a sign of urban chic – quite expected for women partying in Edo,
Japan’s then capital.
As we know from the title cartouche mentioned above, his shrine that the
restaurant is overlooking is located in Shinobazu Pond in the heart of Edo (now Tokyo).
The lanterns attached to the eaves of the gallery where women have gathered say the
restaurant name, Tochigi. The location of the restaurant is excellent as it shows the
waterfront and the expansive landscape. Particularly important is the temple at the left
end of the island – this temple is dedicated to Benzaiten.
In 1625, the Edo shogunate had the Kan'ei-ji temple built here as a counterpart to
the most important Heian period Enryakuji temple located on the summit of Hieizan
Mountain to the north of Kyoto and overlooking the Biwa Lake. In Biwa Lake, a famous
Chikubushima Island is dedicated to Benzaiten. The founder of this Kan’ei-ji temple,
Jigen Daishi, thought that Shinobazu Pond in Edo could be considered a counterpart to
Lake Biwa. Thus, the island in Shinobazu Pond could be interpreted as an equivalent to
Chikubushima Island in Lake Biwa. Hence, it would be a perfect location for a temple of

183
The Kyoto Museum of Traditional Crafts, https://artsandculture.google.com/story/kiseru-pipe-the-kyoto-
museum-of-traditional-crafts/EQXB-U7lkMqkLQ?hl=en
184
Shoten, Tanigawa Seijiro. "Kiseru Pipe - Google Arts & Culture". Google Arts & Culture.

159
Benzaiten. So, the temple was built.185 It is usually called Bentendō, or a “the hall of
Benten,” which is a shortened version of Benzaiten’s name. In the beginning, the island
in Shinobazu pond was accessible only by boat, but later a stone bridge was added on the
east, making it possible to walk to it. Shinobazu Pond became a popular attraction both
because of its natural beauty and as a center of worship of Benzaiten, goddess of music
and good fortune.186 Popularity of this scenic and sacred spot is rendered in the print – it
can be inferred from the bridge filled with travelers and multiple buildings hiding in the
groves. With further inspection, the elegant cranes will be noticed. Not only do they
contribute to the environment but symbolize longevity that people are wishing for.
The location is not only beautiful but essential to the celebration of Benzaiten
and the first day of the Serpent. As the goddess of all things flowing, Benzaiten is often
celebrated near a body of water in the presence of music as people wish for fortune. The
first day of the serpent, which is on the third day of the third month, was traditionally
known as the Peach festival. The name of the festival has evolved into the Dolls Festival,
dralso known as Hinamatsuri. People would participate in Nagashi-bina, the floating of
paper or straw dolls in boats as a representation of casting away one's impurities and sins.
The presence of the shamisen at the party is significant as it contributes to the atmosphere
of the celebration while referring to Benzaiten, the goddess of music, and offers a tribute
of music to the goddess of music. 187
This print is full of many details that bring viewers into the celebration of
seasonal observances during the Edo period. There are also Chinese roots in the customs
of celebration of the first day of the serpent, wishing for good luck. In ancient China, this
celebration used to take place at the edge of the water to drive away evil influences. This
was called the Meandering Stream Banquet, or Kyokusui no en (曲水の宴). Eventually,
this was celebrated on the third day of the third month, also known as Peach Day
(momonohi), and became one of Japan’s sacred festivals. In the Heian period, this
observance consisted of transferring pollution (kegare) of one’s body into a doll, which
got thrown into water. This ritual led to the emergence of embellished dolls and later
evolved into the Doll’s Festival (Hinamatsuri). Today's dolls are dressed as the Emperor,

185
For details on Kin’ei-ji Temple in Edo see, for example, National Diet Library’s website:
https://www.ndl.go.jp/landmarks/e/sights/kaneiji/
186
Benzaiten as a goddess is discussed in the following essay Exploring Benzaiten, by Baidurjya Madhav.
187
"Hinamatsuri - Wikipedia". En.Wikipedia.Org.

160
Empress, attendants, and musicians in the court during the Heian period. Today dolls are
not set to drift away and instead to decorate homes. 188
As has been mentioned, each ukiyo-e print has markings with the information
about their production. There are three stamps in the bottom part of each of the panels.
The circle is the censor’s seal. It contains the character kiwame, meaning “excellent,”
implying the print was examined/approved. The seal below with a circle under the roof is
the seal of the publishing house, Nishimura Yohachi. The last stamp states Toykuni-ga,
the signature that this artist used from 1826. Toyoshige who designed this print was a
student and an adopted son of Toyoshige and after his teacher’s death was entitled to sign
his work as Toyokuni II, although this right wasn’t recognized by all his peers. Whatever
complex relationships existed between the ukiyo-e artists within a certain lineage,
Toyokuni II was a successful, inspirational, and prolific artist who contributed greatly to
the flourishing of figurative ukiyo-e genres, first of all the bijinga genre, of which this
print is an example.
Artistic and cultural richness of Utagawa Toyokuni II’s prints discussed here is
noteworthy. Let’s reiterate. The artist depicts here most fashionable young women and
spares no detail to illustrate this by portraying their complex hairstyles and accessories,
their layered kimonos and lavish obi sashes, all made of thoughtfully patterned textiles.
Additionally, these women care to celebrate seasonal festivals in the most sophisticated
way. They decided to go to a stylish restaurant where they are about to enjoy a variety of
gourmet dishes, accompanied with some alcoholic beverages and smoking. Furthermore,
the location they chose for this observance belonged to Edo’s best! Their restaurant’s
gallery overlooks one of the capital’s major sanctuaries of Benzaiten, the goddess of
music who is inherently connected with the Day of the Snake they are celebrating. And
most fittingly, the depicted women are skillful in playing music and obviously appreciate
it. Moreover, they can venerate Benzaiten at the water edge, essential for this goddess,
and in close proximity to the temple dedicated to Benzaiten. Moreover, this temple was
founded to emulate a much more ancient sanctuary associated with Benzaiten, and thus
brings in historical allusions. All in all, this print by Utagawa Toyoshige provides a true
window into the cultural polyphony and refinement of Edo period Japan and its
fundamental connection to music.

188
Shirane, Haruo. 2012. Japan and The Culture of The Four Seasons. New York: Columbia University
Press.

161
 Bibliography

Japan Feature People’S Wishes To Match Seasonal Events | Web Japan". Web Japan.
https://web-japan.org/trends/11_tech-life/tec202102_event-food.html.
Japan, Web, Trends Japan, Tech Life, and Dishes Events. 2022. "Dishes Eaten On
Special Occasions In Japan Feature People’S Wishes To Match Seasonal Events |
Web Japan". Web Japan. https://web-japan.org/trends/11_tech-
life/tec202102_event-food.html.
Omura, Yuto. 2022. "Chirashizushi (Scattered Sushi Bowl) - Sudachi Recipes". Sudachi
Recipes. https://sudachirecipes.com/chirashizushi-recipe/.
"Red Sea Bream | Highlighted Japanese Ingredients - Japanese Agriculture, Forestry,
Fisheries And Food - Japan External Trade Organization". 2022. ジェトロ.
https://www.jetro.go.jp/en/trends/foods/ingredients/madai.html.
Salter, Rebecca. 2006. Japanese Popular Prints. London: A & C Black.
"Sharing A Cup Together Haisen (Sake Cup Basin) | GEKKEIKAN KYOTO SINCE
1637". 2022. Gekkeikan.Co.Jp. Accessed May 11.
https://www.gekkeikan.co.jp/english/history/culture/haisen.html.
Shirane, Haruo. 2012. Japan And The Culture Of The Four Seasons. New York:
Columbia University Press.
Shoten, Tanigawa Seijiro. 2022. "Kiseru Pipe - Google Arts & Culture". Google Arts &
Culture. Accessed May 6. https://artsandculture.google.com/story/EQXB-
U7lkMqkLQ.
"Utagawa Toyokuni II - Wikipedia". 2022. En.Wikipedia.Org.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utagawa_Toyokuni_II.
Wanczura, Dieter. 2020. "Toyokuni II Utagawa - Artelino". Artelino.Com.
https://www.artelino.com/articles/toyokuni-II-utagawa.asp.
Wikipedia. "Hinamatsuri.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hinamatsuri

162
163
Utagawa Toyokuni II (Toyoshige), 1777-1835
Above: Benzaiten of the Shinobazu pond, first Day of the Serpent. RISD Museum, 20.116
Below: Elegant Figures of the East. Twelve Signs of Zodiac: Snake. RISD Museum 13.1409
For details in both see individual essays in this volume.

164
 Exploring Benzaiten
Baidurjya Madhav

Among the prints chosen for this exhibition two designs by Utagawa Tokoyuni II
(Toyoshige) – Day of the Serpent and Snake (Zodiac) and Elegant Figures of the East,
Twelve Signs of Zodiac: The Snake – have a common topic. They are concerned with
goddess Benzaiten and her association with both music and the snake. Both prints are a
celebration of the year and day of the snake. On this occasion, music is played not only
for the enjoyment of the participants but also as a form of veneration of Benzaiten
(Benten for short), the goddess of music and good fortune.

Location: Benten-dō and Shinobazu Pond

The print Picture of Benzaiten of the Shinobazu Pond, first Day of the Serpent
has a rectangular cartouche on top right in which the title of the print is written as quoted
above. The background of the print depicts the Shinobazu Pond which is located in the
southern part of Ueno Park which was in Edo.189 The island has a Buddhist temple known
as Benten-dō (弁天堂) or “Hall of Benten,” dedicated to the goddess Benzaiten (Benten
in short), one of the Seven Gods of good fortune. Originally this Benten-dō was part of
the larger Kan’ei-ji Temple complex which was built in 1625 by the Buddhist monk
Tenkai to protect the Edo Castle from northeast. Monk Tenkai conceived Kan’ei-je
temple as an emulation of the powerful Tendai center Enryakuji on Mount Hiei.
Enryakuji Temple is overlooking Kyoto in the east and Lake Biwa in the west. A few
years later, Tenkai constructed an island in the middle of Shinobazu Pond and built the
Benten-dō there. The island, called Bentenjima, was designed to imitate the island of
Chikubushima which stands in Lake Biwa on the eastern side of Mount Hiei.190 This has
become one of the most famous places in Edo (now Tokyo). Its representation was a
combination of good-luck wishes and an opportunity to depict beautiful women-
musicians feasting – like our prints. Initially, the island was accessible only by boat, but
later a stone bridge was added on the eastern side in 1672, making it possible to walk to

189
Shinobazu-no-ike Bentendo – An Island Temple in Ueno Park. Ueno Transportation Guide. 2022.
190
Shinobazu Pond – Shinobazu no ike, Vegder’s Blog:
https://printsofjapan.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/shinobazu-pond-shinobazu-no-
ike-%E4%B8%8D%E5%BF%8D%E6%B1%A0-a-favorite-place-for-artists-and-others/.

165
it. Unfortunately, the original 17th-century Benten-dō, save the statue of Benzaiten, was
destroyed during a bombing raid in World War II. The statue, currently, is enshrined in
the new Main Hall of the temple which was reconstructed in 1958.
The popularity of this scenic and sacred spot is rendered in the print with the
gathered mass of people seen on the bridge visiting the temple in the RISD print. In
addition to the scenic beauty the location provides, it is also essential to the celebration of
Benzaiten and the first day of the Serpent. As sacred places dedicated to the goddess of
all things flowing, most Benten Halls are located near water edges. Buddhist ceremonies
of compassion are also held at the pond, in which water birds, turtles, and fish were set
free, and the pond was then known as the “Pond of Release.” On further inspection,
elegant cranes can be noticed flying, probably after such a ceremony. In addition, white
cranes also symbolize longevity, similar to what people wish for.
Benzaiten is enshrined in numerous locations throughout Japan. Japan's most
famous are “Three Great Benzaiten Shrines” – Sandai Benten: the Enoshima Island in
Sagami Bay, the Chikubu Island in Lake Biwa, and the Itsukushima Island in the Seto
Inland Sea. Adding on to these to form the Five Great Benten – Godai Benten: Tenkawa
near the river Tenkawa in southern Nara Prefecture and Kinkazan on an island near
Sendai.191 Al1 of these clearly shows her connection with water. At present, the goddess
is worshipped all over Japan in numerous small shrines located on artificial ponds and
lakes, often called Benten-ike (Benten Pond). A new sect called the Benten-shū (辯天宗),
centering on the goddess, has also taken form.192

Origin and Evolution

Benzaiten has roots in India as a derivation from the Indian goddess Sarasvati.
Goddess Sarasvati was described under four distinct aspects: as the river goddess, as the
goddess of knowledge, as the goddess of music, and as a daughter/consort of Brahma – to
locate her in a broader mythological context.193 The Sanskrit term Sarasvatī refers to both
a goddess and an ancient sacred river in India's Vedic mythology. As the personification
of this sacred river and of water in general, Sarasvatī came to represent everything that
flows. In the Rig Veda (a monumental Hindu text composed centuries before Buddhism's
emergence in India in the 5th century BCE), she is described as the best of goddesses, the

191
Japanese Buddhist Statuary. A to Z Dictionary: https://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/benzaiten-sanctuaries.html
192
Green Shinto, blog: https://www.greenshinto.com/2020/03/14/benten-sect/
193
Catherine Ludvik. From Sarasvati to Benzaiten. PhD Dissertation. 2001

166
"inciter of all pleasant songs, inspirer of all gracious thought."194 In India, she was
invoked in Vedic rites as the deity of music and poetry well before her introduction to
China around the 4th century CE. She is usually seen carrying a lotus and a veena, a
plucked string classical Indian musical instrument. It is interesting to note that the Lotus
plants, a Buddhist symbol of purity, were planted in Shinobazu Pond around Bentenjima
and still cover its southern part. As mentioned in the Rig Veda, Sarasvati is strongly
identified with fertility and cleansing as well. Through Buddhist influence and spread,
Sarasvati was introduced in the early 5th century in China and the 7th-8th century in Japan
via the esoteric Womb World Mandala. Two forms of the goddess became popular: first
was the eight-armed weapon-wielding defender of the nation owing to her martial
description in the Sutra of Golden Light, which has a resemblance to the Indian goddess
Durga and not Sarasvati, and the second was the two-armed biwa playing deity which
reconnected back with the original goddess Sarasvati. Goddess Sarasvati does not have
an independent existence here, instead different places across Japan have adopted and
acquired independent existences. Appropriated by Japan's indigenous island cults and
kami cults to become, essentially, a native Shintō deity as the goddess Benzaiten who has
been worshipped from the late Heian to Kamakura period onwards.

God of Good Fortune

Benzaiten is the only female deity among the Seven Gods of Good Fortune.195
Benzaiten's popularity skyrocketed in the Edo period (1603-1868), when she gained a
large following among the merchant and urban classes, among the geisha and artisans,
and even among gamblers, in her old role as the water goddess and artistic muse and her
new role as one of the wealth-bringing Seven Lucky Gods.196 During the Edo period, to
emphasize her good fortune in the form of wealth, the writing of her name changed from
弁才天 to 弁財天; the middle character of her name written as 才 – “talent” became
written with the character 財 – “wealth”.197 Her connection with money is particularly
evident at the Zeniarai Benten (銭洗弁天 Money-washing Benten) shrine of Kamakura
where people wash their money in a stream running through a cave in hopes of making it
multifold. People thronged the approach to the Benzaiten Temple in the Shinobazu Pond

194
Rig Veda, Griffith translation: http://www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG0039/_P3.HTM
195
Seven Lucky Gods of Japan. Japanese Buddhist Statuary. A to Z Photo Dictionary. 2022.
196
The 7 Propitious Gods: The Evolution of a Goddess – Benzaiten 弁財天. 2010.
197
Goddess Benzaiten - Japanese Buddhist Statuary. A to Z Photo Dictionary. 2022.

167
on a special day when her sculpture kept in the temple is taken out to be viewed as a
special form of veneration. The temple also gave away charms to worshippers on that
day which were believed to magically bring wealth to their owners.
It is noteworthy that the obi of the musician in the print that is a part of a triptych
is decorated with good-luck symbols, known as TAKARAZUKUSHI (宝尽くし)
translating to “all sorts of treasures” (or myriads of treasures). They are associated with
the Seven Gods of Good Luck and Benzaiten is one of them. The treasures that promised
prosperity, long life, and general good fortune included those depicted in the center of the
flowers that decorate the courtesan’s elaborate obi sash.

Benzaiten’s association with Music

Benzaiten like Sarasvati has come to be associated with everything that flows –
thus, with music, water, time, words, speech, eloquence, and by extension knowledge.
The two-armed form is closely associated with music. Due to her immense popularity,
she was often represented in ukiyo-e. Although she is mostly seen carrying a lute biwa, in
ukiyo-e she is shown occasionally with a zither (koto). The presence of the shamisen at
the party is significant as it contributes to the atmosphere of the celebration while
referring to Benzaiten and offers a tribute of music to the goddess of music.

Benzaiten’s association with the Snake

Due to the association of Benzaiten with water, she has also come to be
associated with water creatures like snakes and dragons as her messengers. Benzaiten is
hence closely associated with ancient kami Ugaijin, a Japanese folk god of harvests,
fertility, and wealth due to his snake-like body. This kind of Ugaijin’s representation is
often seen decorating Benzaiten’s hairdo or placed at the entrance of a Benzaiten Halls.
According to Mock Joya, Benten’s statue often has coils of snakes representing
jealousy.198 Hence to date, couples avoid going together as they may be separated owing
to Benten’s jealousy. Annual and seasonal celebrations in Japan have been associated
with animals and plants having talismanic significance. One such occasion is Benten’s
day – the Day of the Snake which occurs on the third day of the third month of the East
Asian calendar. This is indicated as an occasion for the banquet the ladies on the RISD
print are taking part in. On this day, ritual purification called Joshi-No Sekku takes place

198
J. Vegder, Prints of Japan, Blog. Not quite the Zodiac – Part Five: The Snake – hebi – 蛇. 2013,
https://printsofjapan.wordpress.com/2013/01/08/5220/

168
along with outdoor drinking and poetry parties. The hour of the Snake is the best time to
appeal as according to legend, Benten appeared in the form of a two-hundred feet snake
when Hōjō Tokimasa (1138-1215) prayed to her. In mythology, snakes are regarded as
intelligent, with a tendency to lack scruples.

First Day of the Serpent and Chinese Mythology

Celebration of the First Day of Serpent also has Chinese roots. In ancient China,
the celebration, called the Winding Stream Banquet (Kyokusui no en), used to take place
at the edge of the water to drive away evil influences. Eventually, this was celebrated on
the third day of the third month, also known as Peach Day (momo no hi),199 and became
one of Japan’s sacred festivals. In the Heian period, this observance consisted of
transferring pollution (kegare) of one’s body into a doll, which got thrown into the water.
This ritual led to the emergence of embellished dolls and what is known as today’s Doll’s
Festival or Hinamatsuri. People would participate in Nagashi-bina, the floating of paper
or straw dolls in boats as a representation of casting away one's impurities and sins.

Comparison with the Second Print

While the first print is more evident in depicting the celebration of Benzaiten on
the Day of the Serpent by setting it against the backdrop of the shrine filled with music
and recitals, in the second print reference to Benzaiten is less direct. A framed inset with
a picture of a snake in wisteria branches accompanies a full-scale close-up of a beautiful
koto-player. The blue frame contains curved S-shaped lines representing the waves of
water which is surrounding the snake. The presence of the snake immediately establishes
a clear association between the musician and Benzaiten.

Benzaiten and the Two Prints Again

All the above discussed details along with the presence of musical instruments
and women musicians bind the two prints into the same category of celebrating the
Benzaiten Day – Day of the Serpent through music. Both these prints by Utagawa
Toyoshige provide a glimpse into the elaborate culture of the Edo era with its core
connection to music.

199Shirane, Haruo. 2012. Japan and The Culture of The Four Seasons. New York: Columbia University
Press.

169
 Bibliography

Shinobazu-no-ike Bentendo – An Island Temple in Ueno Park. Ueno Transportation

Guide. 2022. https://www.uenostation.com/shinobazu-no-ike-bentendo-an-
island-temple-in-ueno-park/
Shinobazu Pond – Shinobazu no ike – 不忍池 – a favorite place for artists and others.
2016. https://printsofjapan.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/shinobazu-pond-
shinobazu-no-ike-%e4%b8%8d%e5%bf%8d%e6%b1%a0-a-favorite-place-for-
artists-and-others/
Benzaiten - Wikipedia. 2022. En.Wikipedia.Org.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benzaiten#:~:text=Benzaiten%20
Catherine Ludvik. From Sarasvati to Benzaiten. Dissertation. 2001
Seven Lucky Gods of Japan - A to Z Photo Dictionary of Japanese Buddhist Statuary.
2022. https://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/seven.shtml
The 7 Propitious Gods: The Evolution of a Goddess – Benzaiten 弁財天. 2010.
https://printsofjapan.wordpress.com/?s=benzaiten
Goddess Benzaiten - A to Z Photo Dictionary of Japanese Buddhist Statuary. 2022.
https://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/benzaiten.shtml
Not quite the Zodiac – Part Five: The Snake – hebi – 蛇. 2013
https://printsofjapan.wordpress.com/2013/01/08/5220/
Shirane, Haruo. 2012. Japan and The Culture Of The Four Seasons. New York:
Columbia University Press.

170
171
Utagawa Hiroshige, 1797-1858
Famous Views of Edo. Asukayama (Edo meisho zue. Asukayama). Ōban triptych.
Publisher: Fujiokaya Hikotarō. Date: 1844-1848. Private collection

172
 Sakura Viewing Pleasures:
A close observation of Utagawa Hiroshige’s Famous Places in Edo: Asukayama
Leslie Berumen Flores, Ryan Brandon Hsiao

Four townswomen are sitting outside on a blanket spread on the slopes of

Asukayama and are enjoying the seasonal event called hanami200, or cherry blossom
viewing.201 For this special event, the ladies have dressed up, wearing kimonos with
different patterns, with their ornate obi202 tied on the back. From right to left, their outfits
include a kimono with an intricate pattern in white on red for the top section and dark
brown on white for the bottom section; The next one is wearing a light green kimono with
a dark green gridded pattern. The most distant one wears a kimono with gray cherry
blossoms over the brown background. The last one is wearing a black kimono with blue
obi patterned in red. In the same order, one woman prepares food, the next plays a
musical instrument called the shamisen, and the other two play a hand game called ken
(拳), which is similar to “rock, paper, scissors.” The women are surrounded by several
items, including bento203 boxes, a sake204 kettle, and a smoking set. Overall, the
atmosphere is nice and lively.205 They seem to be addressing someone off the frame since
they are not looking towards one another, but to the left of the triptych. Each figure is
frozen in time as if the viewer is right there with them, and as if they could start moving
any second.

200
Cherry blossom viewing
201
“【飛鳥山】江戸名所図会 飛鳥山,” Kita City Asukayama Museum 北区飛鳥山博物館, February 16,
2016.
202
a broad sash worn with a Japanese kimono
203
A multicompartment box used for containing the different courses of a usually Japanese lunch
204
Japanese alcoholic beverage made from fermented rice
205
Kita City Asukayama Museum 北区飛鳥山博物館, 2016.

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Written Text
As is usual with ukiyo-e prints, the image includes writings. Those writings
provide context for the viewers about what the print is about and who it was created by.
At the top left corner there is the title cartouche shaped as a rounded rectangle. It encases
the largest signs on the print – they appear in black against grass-green background. The
title says Famous Views of Edo: Asukayama (江戸名所図会 飛鳥山).
Adjacent to the title cartouche is rather a large lightly colored panel with
scattered cherry blossoms and a dense text. The text talks about Asukayama becoming
the center of cherry-blossom viewing, and thus enriches perception of the image.

The text in the cartouche reads:

In the Genkō era (1321-1324) a person named Toyoshima Saeimon ( 豊
島左衛門) transferred to these lands the shrine of Asuka Jinja [from
Wakayama Prefecture, Kumano region]. For this reason, the name of
Asukayama was taken. After that, this shrine was made into a main
building known as Oji Gongen and became a subordinate of the Kumano
shrine. In the Genbun era (1736-1741), a thousand cherry trees were
planted at Asukayama. Years passed, and these cherry trees turned into a
blooming grove. It became a scenic spot for admiring flowers in the
spring, grasses in the autumn, cool in the summer and snow in the
winter. Above all, in the third month, everyone––the refined and the
vulgar––gather there for pleasurable pastimes: drinking, feasting,
having all kinds of poetic gatherings for Japanese and Chinese verse, for
the linked verse renga (連歌)206 and 31-syllable haiku (俳句)207, staying
there for long days, saddened by the coming of darkness, - indeed, this
magnificent sight was out of the ordinary.”208

206
Linked poems, often done collaboratively among a group. Participants would trade lines with one another.
207
Haiku is a popular form of poetry in Japan, and is usually short. 31-syllable poems are named tanka.
208
For transcription see website on Japanese culture of food: https://www.syokubunka.or.jp/gallery/nishikie/
Translation provided by the instructor.

174
 The poetic and descriptive tone of the cartouche’s text matches perfectly with the
rest of the imagery, which captures a relaxed atmosphere, offering not only a detailed
viewing of a few women in the foreground, but also dozens of other groups, going about
their own celebrations in the background. As what was written in the cartouche suggests,
Asukayama is known for its cherry trees. These same cherry blossoms show up behind
the cartouche, acting as a decoration and an intentional reference to the subject matter at
hand.
In the lower part of the compositions – over the grassy surface of the lawn, there
are more written markings. Located next to each other, they are: (a) the signature of the
artist “Hiroshige-ga (廣重画) – picture by Hiroshige.” (b). The seal of the publisher

consists of the sign for “ya” under the triangular “roof” – this seal belonged to Fujiokaya
Hikotarō (藤岡屋彦太郎), publishing house (Shōgendō 松原堂). (c) The round seal with

characters inside is a seal of the censor. It reads “Watari,” and stands for Watanabe
Jiemon.
Details in the Background and Foreground
It is important that details like these are not overlooked as they can provide further
context for the viewer and add to the printer's ability to depict realistic scenes. In the
background elements of nature appear throughout the hills such as pine trees, sakura trees,
different groups of people having their own picnics, and kids running around playing with
each other. Towards the bottom of the print there also appears to be a golden, flat-like
shape that depicts mist. Moving from the background to a closer observation of details in
the foreground the viewers will be able to inspect the objects which sit on the red rug that
serves as figures’ picnic blanket. Let’s look at the objects right to left. At the right edge of
print there is a green piece of cloth wrapping over rather a large object what might be a
multi-tiered food box called jūbako209 (重箱). Next to that is a wooden bucket meant for
containing liquids (in this case, perhaps water) called the oke210 (桶).211 At the foreground
behind the woman to the left there is another food box jūbako. Next to the food box
orizume212 (折詰), there is equipment to warm up sake called kan213 (燗). On the blanket
there are also tea bowls and a small teapot kyūsu (急須).

209
A multi-tiered food box.
210
Wooden bucket
211
Gabi Greve, “Okeya Bucket Maker,” okeya bucket maker, March 11, 2019.
212
Sectioned box for various delicacies.
213
warming up sake

175
Utagawa Hiroshige
Famous Views of Edo: Asukayama (江戸名所図会 飛鳥山) is a triptych
designed by Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858) and published between 1844 & 1848.
Utagawa Hiroshige––also known as Ichiyūsai Hiroshige and originally named Andō
Tokutarō––received the name Utagawa by entering the school of the ukiyo-e master
Utagawa Toyohiro around 1811. Recognized as one of “three great Utagawas,” he was a
highly influential print designer, painter, and illustrator. Hiroshige was particularly
prominent and innovative in meisho-e (名所絵), the landscape genre, but also excelled in
bijinga genre and beyond.
During Hiroshige’s time studying under Utagawa Toyohiro, he was exposed to
an array of painting styles from the Kanō school, Shijō school, as well as Nanga painting
and western art. However, after attempting (and excelling at) other ukiyo-e genres––such
as musha-e214 (武者絵), yakusha-e215 (役者絵), and the bijinga216 (美人が) genre––
Hiroshige spent the majority of his later life making landscape designs, or more
specifically, meisho-e, which translates directly to “pictures of famous places.” The
landscape genre eventually results as Hiroshige’s signature, having been deemed the
“master of the Japanese landscape print.”217 Among these images representing the
Japanese landscape, Asukayama is one of the locations that Hiroshige explored on
several occasions.

Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858). Cherry-blossom Viewing at Asuka Hill (Asukayama hanami no

zu). Series Famous Places in Edo, Newly Selected (Shinsen Edo meisho), ca. 1843–47, MFA.218

214
An ukiyo-e woodblock print genre that depicts traditional Japanese warriors, “warrior pictures.”
215
Actor prints, often depicting Kabuki theater actors.
216
Beautiful women pictures, although not limited to, are most seen represented with ukiyo-e prints.
217
Newland, et al. The Hotei Encyclopedia, 504.
218
MFA, https://collections.mfa.org/objects/237683

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The Hanami Tradition
Cherry blossoms, also known as sakura, are one of the most significant parts of
Japanese culture; it is the national flower of Japan as well. Seen as a symbol of
“renewal,” cherry blossoms bloom every year around springtime.219 Moreover, the
sakura220 often stays alive for no more than a short two weeks, which the Japanese see as
a poetic representation for “the fleeting nature of life.”221 Henceforth, people in the nation
take time each year to celebrate the short-living cherry blossoms and participate in the
national activity known as hanami. Hanami, or 花見, stands directly for flower “hana
(花),” and view, or viewing “mi (見).” Since the Momoyama period (1573-1603), hanami
has been a tradition in Japan. The first cherry blossom viewing event, or party, was
“organized by Toyotomi Hideyoshi––also known as ‘the Great Unifier’–– (1537-1598) at
Yoshino.”222 There have also been other instances of organized events as such, but it is
during the Edo period when the hanami culture became “an indispensable part of the life
of commoners.”223
Bento culture
Hanami is often conducted with food consumption. Since people travel to
different locations for hanami, in this case Asukayama, bento boxes are the most
common way to hold and transport food items. Bento boxes often include a single meal,
prepared for either a single person or a group. These boxes commonly contain glutinous
rice balls, dried rice, steamed and seasoned fish paste, pickled vegetables, dumplings, and
many other types of food. On Hiroshige’s print, shallow black boxes can be seen with an
array of different foods. Due to the fact that much of the only revealing bento box is
greatly obscured by the obi of the lady sitting in front, it is difficult to make out what

219
Takeda Erina, “Significance of Sakura: Cherry Blossom Traditions in Japan,” Smithsonian Folklife
Festival (Smithsonian Institute, April 9, 2014)
220
Cherry blossoms.
221
Takeda Erina. Smithsonian Folklife Festival, 2014.
222
Sachiko Matsushita. 江戸食文化紀行, 2002.
223
Sachiko Matsushita. 江戸食文化紀行, 2002.

177
each food item is. However, since the item in rows at the forefront is white and round, it
is possible that it is kamaboko, or seasoned steamed fish paste.224 Another possibility is
sashimi, or raw fish, is also enjoyed by viewers of cherry blossoms during sakura season.
Although usually paired with nigiri and sushi, which is not present in this print, it could
be seen in other prints that feature food as more of the focal point, such as the Genji
Mitate Cherry Blossom Banquet by Utagawa Kunisada (1786-1865) in 1855.225 The
specific origin of bento boxes is unknown.

Utagawa Kunisada (1786-1865) Genji Mitate Cherry Blossom Banquet, 1855, Google Arts &
Culture, Ajinomoto Foundation for Dietary Culture.

Three of the more likely historical uses of bento are: “soldiers carrying them to the
battlefields; theater-goers eating conveniently out of them as they saw or sprawled in
their tatami-matted spaces at interminable performances of Noh or Kabuki plays; and
sumo wrestling fans eating them during the show.” 226 On rare occasions, jūbako, or
multi-layered food boxes, would have “landscapes of food in the sections of the box.”227
Nonetheless, in the Asukayama print, the boxes are minimally decorated, with just a
black exterior, a red interior, and a light-brown lining in-between. On the bottom right
corner of Hiroshige’s design is a box wrapped around with a dark navy fabric. That item
likely contains more food in bento boxes; this is because of a common way of wrapping
bento boxes, which is to wrap them in dark cloth. Doing so brings into consideration the
experience of accessing the food inside. The darkness and coolness of the colors
essentially and psychologically lowers the expectations of those who would like to enjoy

224
“Kamaboko: Artisanal Samurai Seafood,” Suzuhiro Kamaboko, 2022.
225
Hayashi Ayano, “Food in Ukiyo-e: Feasting Under the Cherry Blossoms,” Google Arts & Culture
(Google), accessed May 11, 2022.
226
Merry White. About Japan, accessed May 11, 2022.
227
Merry White. About Japan, accessed May 11, 2022.

178
the food, and consequently makes the revealing of the food inside more awe-inducing and
the colors of the food appear more vibrant and delectable.
Shamisen & Music
At a festive event that is the annual hanami, music is essential to not only
Japanese culture, but the specific occasion too. A shamisen (三味線) is held by the
woman in the gridded kimono on Famous Views of Edo: Asukayama. It is a “lute
instrument with three strings.”228 Although the shamisen is known as an instrument of
Japanese tradition, it originated from the Chinese instrument named sanxian.229 As with
other forms of art, the shamisen became popular around the Edo period, where the “city-
dwelling affluent commoners, and [those who live in] rural areas” were able to access the
artform.230 Hanami is often accompanied by music played on the shamisen and koto.231
Often Japanese folk songs related to cherry blossoms are performed. One of these songs
is called “Hana,” which means “flower” in Japanese.232 Another one is named “Sakura,
Sakura.”233 These songs originally come with lyrics, which poetically speak about the
beauty of cherry blossoms, and call to view the sakura, as part of hanami. Excerpts of the
songs are as follows: “Cherry blossoms, cherry blossoms / Blanketing the countryside /
As far as you can see / Is it a mist, or clouds? / Fragrant in the morning sun / Cherry
blossoms, cherry blossoms / Flowers in full bloom”234 and “Lo, see the cherry trees that
stand in the morning mist / I hear them speak to me in a tender tone / On the eve I love to
see the waving willows / They stretch their hands to me strolling alone.”235 The tonality
of the shamisen can be adjusted to mimic singing voices, therefore these folk songs are
usually interchangeable. Even today, hanami events would feature a lady playing the
shamisen or koto as part of the tradition of cherry blossom viewing.

228
Dieter Wanczura, “Shamisen,” artelino, October 26, 2020.
229
San means three, and xian means string, which translates directly to “three strings.”
230
Wilhelmina Bogoian-Mullen, “The History of the Shamisen,” Shamiko Guitars, February 27, 2020.
231
A 13-string zither-like instrument that lays flat. It is the national instrument of Japan.
232 Lisa Yannucci, “Cherry Blossom Parties in Japan and a Japanese Folk Song Called ‘Hana’ (‘Sakura’),”

Mama Lisa's World of Children and International Culture, March 25, 2006.
233 Lisa Yannucci, “‘Sakura, Sakura’ Another Japanese Cherry Blossom Song,” Mama Lisa's World of Children

and International Culture, March 25, 2006.

234 Lisa Yannucci. Mama Lisa’s World of Children and International Culture, 2006.
235
Lisa Yannucci. Mama Lisa’s World of Children and International Culture, 2006.

179
Part of a Triptych
As has been mentioned before, Famous Views of Edo: Asukayama is a triptych.
Here mostly its rightmost panel depicting the four women having a picnic has been
discussed. To the left, towards the foreground there is a big pine tree that takes up the
major part of the middle panel.236 Further away, in the middle panel, the outlined
silhouette of Mt. Fuji237 can be seen behind the tree, symbolizing nature’s grandeur and
adding to the beautiful scene of the Asukayama slopes.238 Many people are depicted over
the vast space of the slopes, They are enjoying the hanami in a variety of ways,
conveying how popular this particular location and time of day it is to celebrate

hanami239.

The scene to the left of the pine tree (see above) is that of women chasing each
other, laughing as they play around the beautiful hills and being heard by the women on
the right.240 In the triptych there are mostly women depicted in the foreground and with
high details, thus conveying that it was common for women of those times to have
regularly visited Asukayama for the hanami.

By Way of Conclusion
Utagawa Hiroshige’s Famous Views of Edo: Asukayama captures the atmosphere
and joyous feelings of the hanami celebrations depicting various groups of people with

236
Kita City Asukayama Museum, 北区飛鳥山博物館, 2016.
237
The highest mountain in Japan, referred to by locals as “Fuji-san” is an important symbol in Japanese
culture.
238
Kita City Asukayama Museum, 北区飛鳥山博物館, 2016.
239
Cherry blossom viewing.
240
Kita City Asukayama Museum, 北区飛鳥山博物館, 2016.

180
different levels of detail. The print exemplifies the many aspects of leisurely activity in
the Edo period, including the fronting cherry blossom viewing tradition, the culture
behind portable foodstuff that is bento boxes, and enjoyment of shamisen music. Not
only that. Hiroshige’s previous experience as ukiyo-e designer shows through in this
print, as it nicely merges different genres of ukiyo-e art such as depictions of famous
places – meisho-e and of beautiful women, the bijinga. Thus, the artist could utilize his
skills in showing leisurely activities as well as flora and nature. With great detail and
skill, Hiroshige’s Famous Views of Edo: Asukayama sends the contemporary viewer back
in time and allows an earnest experience of peaceful festivities to shine through one of
Japan’s most popular and iconic art forms––ukiyo-e woodblock prints.

181
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cherry-blossoms/cgJSSWYlqhQ6Jg.
Bogoian-Mullen, Wilhelmina. “The History of the Shamisen.” Shamiko Guitars,
February 27, 2020. https://shamikoguitars.com/blogs/news/the-history-of-the-
shamisen.
Erina, Takeda. “Significance of Sakura: Cherry Blossom Traditions in Japan.”
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“Kamaboko: Artisanal Samurai Seafood.” Suzuhiro Kamaboko, 2022.
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