The signatures of Kunichika

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 for when a print was produced. In the case of the artist known to us all as Toyohara Kunichika (b1835-d1900) [豊原国周], whose real name was Arakawa Yasohachi [荒川八十八], he changed his signature quite a lot at the start of his career but then for the latter half he settled down to one or two variations. 

Signatures ending with “ga” (artist)

These are nearly always prints from the 1850s and early 1860s.

Kunichika ga [国周画] (1850s-1865/8, 1869)	Ōju Kunichika ga [應需国周画] (by demand…) 1859	??? Kunichika ga  1862	Ichiō Kunichika ga 1863
n/a
Hōsai ga [鴬斎画] 1860 – 1862	Ichihōsai yu ga [一鶯斎遊画] 1862	Ichihōsai Kunichika ga [一鴬斎国周画] 1858 – 1863, 1870

Signatures ending with “hitsu” (brush)

1860s to his death in 1900.

 

Ichiōsai Kunichika hitsu [一鶯斎国周筆]  1865	Kunichika hitsu [国周筆] (1863-1872, 1874)	Ōju Kunichika hitsu [應需国周筆] 1869	Toyohara Kunichika hitsu [豊原国周筆] (hexagonal chika) (1870-1885)
Toyohara Kunichika hitsu [豊原国周筆] (square chika) (1884-1900)	Ōju Toyohara Kunichika hitsu [應需 豊原国周筆] 1883-1886	Ōju Hōshunrō Kunichika hitsu [応需豊春楼国周筆]  1890 Hōshunrō seems to be very rare (4 found online +1 extra in my collection) 1890-1895	Hōshunrō Kunichika hitsu [豊春楼国周筆] 1892
豊春楼国周 Hōshunrō Kunichika 1892 (note it lacks hitsu)