Description
Refined triptych of woodblock prints made around 1892 by the famous artist Mizuno Toshikata (水野年方) and entitled “Depiction of Sasaki Moritsuna asking a fisherman about the depth of water before attacking the Taira’s army at the Fujito bay province of Bizen” (佐々木盛綱備前国藤戸ノ渡リニ平軍ヲ襲ハント漁人ニ水之浅深ヲ問フ図).
The occasion is that of the Battle of Kojima (児島合戦), also known as the Battle of Fujito (藤戸の戦い), fought in 1184, during the Genpei War (源平合戦), and led by the military commander Sasaki Moritsuna (佐々木盛綱) that on that circumstance commanded a bold charge of cavalry after having waded, on the backs of the animals, a stretch of sea.
The triptych, printed by the publisher Akiyama Buemon (秋山武右衛門), despite the right signs of aging, including small holes and imperfections of the margins, keeps intact its extraordinary visual impact.
