Description
Polychrome woodblock print of the kuchi-e (口絵) type entitled Wakamusha (若武者), meaning “Young Warrior”, and depicting an adolescent Minamoto no Yoshitsune (源義経), a hero in the fighting between the Minamoto (源氏) and Taira (平氏) clans, who since childhood had been encouraged to grow strong to avenge his father’s death at the hands of the Taira.
The work, made by the artist Kajita Hanko (梶田半古), is taken from vol. 7 n. 14 of the famous literary magazine Bungei Kurabu (文芸倶楽部), a special issue (増刊) published in October 1901 and entitled “Japanese Samurai” (日本武士).
The print on Japanese washi paper (和紙), produced by the Hakubunkan (博文館) publishing house, despite the right signs of aging including slight red pigment halos and imperfections on the margins, is in good general condition.
