Untitled

Utagawa Toyokuni I

ca. 1798 · Woodblock print; ink and color on paper · Asian Art

This print shows the tension of a couple's hopeless relationship. The character of the courtesan Minoya Sankatsu holds the letter she and her lover Akaneya Hanshichi wrote to his family as part of their preparations for double suicide. Ichikawa Komazō II (Matsumoto Kōshirō V) played the role of Hanshichi, Nakayama Tomisaburō (1760–1819) the role of Sankatsu. The artist Utagawa Toyokuni was especially adept at portraying actors.

Artist

Utagawa Toyokuni I

Date

ca. 1798

Medium

Woodblock print; ink and color on paper

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1922