Description
Magnificent original woodblock print made in June 1857 by the artist Utagawa Kunisada (歌川国貞). The work is entitled “The Twenty-third Night” (廿三夜) and is taken from the “Parody of Scenes in Moonlight” (見立月つくし), a series of prints produced by the publisher Hayashiya Shogoro (林屋庄五郎) and depicting popular actors with subjects derived from nocturnal scenes taken from famous kabuki (歌舞伎) plays.
In the print presented here we see the actor Ichikawa Ichizo III (三代目市川市蔵) who plays the role of Nitta Umejiro (新田梅次郎). The man is depicted holding his sword, probably to face a rokurokubi (ろくろ首) demon in the context of the play “Kasane Ogi Chiyo no Matsuwaka” (重扇寿松若).
The woodblock print of vertical large oban (大判) format is in very good condition, thanks also to an effective relining carried out on the back with another sheet of Japanese washi paper (和紙).
