Artist: Toyokuni III/Kunisada (1786 – 1864)

Title of print: The Courier from Hell—Breaking the Seals (Koi Bikyaku Yamato Orai)

Title of print series: Comparisons of Lovers, a Collection of Ballads (Koi Awase Hauta Zukushi)

Date: 1860

Medium: Woodblock print; ink and color on paper

In this promotional actor print, renowned artist Kunisada depicts Kataoka Nizaemon VIII in the role of Chubei and Onoe Kikugoro IV in the role of Umegawa, from the romance play “Koi Bikyaku Yamato Orai” (The Courier from Hell–Breaking the Seals). The play, performed at Nakamura theatre in Edo in the 3rd month of 1860, is a rewritten version of Chikamatsu Monzaemon’s famous 1711 play “Meido no Hikyaku,” originally written for puppet theatre. It tells the story of a money courier, Chubei, who unlawfully breaks the seal on official money to buy out the contract of a courtesan. 

Utagawa Kunisada, also known as Utagawa Toyokuni III, was a pupil of Toyokuni I of the Utagawa school and a leading ukiyo-e artist of the late Edo period. He is said to have produced the largest amount of works of any ukiyo-e artist. He’s known for his trendy and alluring prints of women in the 1820s and 30s, as well as the modern quality of his actor prints, which made up the bulk of Kunisada’s career, totalling 60-70% of his work. Kunisada established a style distinct from that of his master’s and was known for radically redeveloping it in tune with the changing public taste. 

Another impression of this print is in The British Museum.

Selected Readings:

• Izzard, Sebastian. Kunisada’s World. Japan Society, Inc, 1993.

Posted by Gracelynn Wan

Nov. 9, 2020