Oribe Yahei Kanamaru, Stories of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Samurai
Description
1847 woodblock print by Utagawa Kuniyoshi titled "Oribe Yahei Kanamaru, Stories of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Samurai."
Artwork Details
Medium
Paper, Ink
Made/Created
Artist Information
Artist
Utagawa Kuniyoshi
Role
Artist
Date made
1847
Time Period
19th Century
Notes
Edo period
Interpretative Labels
Label
The elderly samurai in this print is Oribe Yahei Kanamaru, one of the famed 47 rōnin who avenged their lord after he was forced to commit seppuku (ritual suicide) in eighteenth-century Japan. The rōnin ultimately took their own lives as punishment. Kuniyoshi was inspired by a theater reenactment of this historic event and created a series of 51 prints depicting the individual warriors. Kanamaru, shown here at age 78, was said to have fought with remarkable bravery, wielding a spear, with two swords at his side. Here he carries his helmet and a banner emblazoned with his name and clan.
