Accession Number
2011/2.191.2

Title
Celebratory Soga for the New Year: Ichimura Uzaemon XII and Ichikawa Kodanji IV as the Mechanical Performance Announcers Kakichi and Shodanji

Artist(s)
Utagawa Kunisada

Artist Nationality
Japanese (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
1848

Medium & Support
woodblock print on paper

Dimensions
14 3/4 in x 30 in (37.47 cm x 76.2 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Sharlynn and Andrew Circo, in memory of Sotokichi Katsuizumi

Subject matter
Actor Ichimura Uzaemon XII was also known as Ichimura Takenojō V. He was born in 1812 and active from 1818 until his death in 1851.

Actor Ichikawa Kodanji IV was born to a family of kabuki actors in 1812. He was active in kabuki from 1820 until his death in 1866. He was known for his roles in jidaimono (period plays) and sewamono (contemporary plays) as well as for the techniques of chūnori (acting while suspended from the ceiling) and quick-changes (hayagawari).

This play is one of the many variations of the story of the Soga brothers, one of the most popular revenge stories of the Edo period. The story is based on a late Kamakura period (1185-1333) book, Soga monogatari that tells the tale of two brothers, Jūrō and Gorō, who take revenge for their father on Kudō Suketsune in 1193. The brothers were executed, and it is thought that the story may have been written to pacify their spirits.
 

Physical Description
This is an image of two men, one standing behind the other, who is kneeling. Both wear matching clothes: black and white trousers, black socks, and multi-colored robes with a bulls-eye crest.  Behind them is a raised platform, decorated with multi-colored lotus flowers and blue and white tiles.
 
This is the center panel of a triptych (with 2011/2.191.1 and 2011/2.191.3).
 
Inscriptions: Toyokuni ga (Artist's signature); Yamaguchi Tōbei (Publisher's seal); Hama and Kinugasa (Censor's seals)

Primary Object Classification
Print

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form. Keywords
men (male humans)
puppeteers
stages (performance spaces)
theater (discipline)
vegetables