ChrisR

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Unpacking 3 deliveries from Japan

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 25, 2022July 26, 2022

Since Easter I have had 3 deliveries from Japan but didn’t have the time or space to unpack them and photograph them all. So this…

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The Fish Shop Teacup

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 24, 2022July 24, 2022

Sam Leiter gave me a copy of a summary of the plot in Japanese (below) which I had summarised by u/Extension_Pipe4293 on Reddit:  A playboy…

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Kunichika publishers vs carvers

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 20, 2022July 20, 2022

This is just a quick analysis of my own Kunichika collection – listing all collaborations between publisher & carver, where they have both been mentioned…

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The signatures of Kunichika

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 14, 2022July 16, 2022

Ukiyo-e artists were famous for having many different styles of signature throughout their careers and often these can help you pin-point a rough date range…

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The Fukuda publishing family

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 14, 2022July 28, 2022

Fukuda Kumajirō [福田熊次郎] and his son Fukuda Hatsujirō [福田初次郎] (1894-1939) were quite a force in Meiji publishing. Their double-fish logo giving their name and address…

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A Meiji fascination for female murderers

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 11, 2022July 25, 2022

The Meiji period brought in a lot of relaxations in censorship and this brought about a boom in the number of newspapers all vying to…

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Umbrellas in ukiyo-e

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 11, 2022July 11, 2022

Umbrellas don’t sound very thrilling but I’m always looking out for elements of ukiyo-e that illustrate aspects of the Meiji period – the preoccupations of…

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Oatsurae in ukiyo-e

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 11, 2022July 11, 2022

In the early days of ukiyo-e artists, experimented with different types of background to give their characters better prominence and increate their visual impact. One…

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Ningen Banji Kane no Yo no Naka (Money Takes Care of Everything)

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 11, 2022July 11, 2022

This modern Meiji play is a morality tale about the effects of money and greed on a family’s fortune, based on Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s play of…

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Sayaate (the scabbard clashing)

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 11, 2022July 11, 2022

The sayaate scene is one of the most famous confrontations in kabuki theatre, in the play Ukiyozuka Hiyoku no Inazuma and in fact it is…

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Satsuki bare Ueno no Asakaze (The Morning Wind in a Clear Ueno Sky)

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 10, 2022July 11, 2022

The Tokugawa shoguns had ruled for the entire Edo period (1603 to 1868) and in theory they ruled for the Emperor but in reality they…

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Ougi Byoushi Ōoka Seidan (Famous Cases of Ōoka)

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 9, 2022July 12, 2022

Ougi Byoushi Ōoka Seidan (Famous Cases of Ōoka) is part of a family of plays about the life and times of Ōoka Tadasuke, an Edo…

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The last days of Banzui Chōbē

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 9, 2022

This play features one of the most famous street-tough heroes (otokodate) of kabuki theatre – others include Sukeroku. They were heroic fighting commoners who would…

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[WIP] Meijin Choji

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 9, 2022July 11, 2022

I don’t have the synopsis for this play but it seems to have been a very popular play based on the book “Meijin Choji: Joiner”…

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Postman Otokichi has arrived!

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 9, 2022July 11, 2022

I really love this print because it sums up the Meiji period very nicely – a traditional play “Kyō Ningyō (Kyōto Doll)” has been updated…

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Suitengū Megumi no Fukagawa [Kōbē an unfortunate samurai]

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 9, 2022July 11, 2022

Suitengū Megumi no Fukagawa (also called “Kōbē Fudeya”) was one of the so-called “Cropped Hair Plays (zangirimono) portraying “modern” Meiji Tokyo and the people living…

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Dōjōji Ittsui no Furisode (The Maiden at Dōjō Temple)

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 9, 2022July 11, 2022

Dōjōji Ittsui no Furisode (“The Maiden at Dōjō Temple”) is another classic kabuki dance play based on an 18th century Nō play simply called “Dōjōji”.…

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Kirare Yosa (Yosa the Bat!)

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 9, 2022July 11, 2022

Yowa Nasake Ukina no Yokogushi often called just “Kirare Yosa” or “Yosa the Bat” is another traditional classic of the kabuki repertoire but, ironically, the…

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Soga Monogatari (The Tales of Soga)

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 8, 2022July 11, 2022

Soga Monogatari is another very simple story that has spawned many variants and is a classic tale of revenge. Soga Jūrō and Soga Gorō are…

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Tsuyu Kosode Mukashi Hachijō (Shinza the Barber)

by ChrisRPosted onJuly 7, 2022July 11, 2022

Shinza the Barber is one of my favourites of the modern Meiji plays. It is a classic kabuki story of love, abduction, trickery and revenge…

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