Antique Japanese Original Woodblock Print Triptych by Kunisada -New Year Felicitation at the Palace- c.1847
Presented is a beautiful Japanese full oban-size woodblock print - diptych- created by the renowned artist of the late Edo period, Utagawa Kunisada (1786 - 1864), also known as Kunisada I and Toyokuni III. He was one of the most prominent artists and printmakers during the late Edo era (1600-1864) and the most productive of all ukiyo-e artists - he had created about 20,000 images, each of them printed in several hundred prints.
This print is a triptych - a three-sheet print called "New Year Felicitations at the Palace" (Shunshoku yakata no kotobuki). It illustrates one of the chapters (chapter 9, I believe) from the Japanese classical novel "Gendji Monogatari" written ny Lady Murasaki in the early 11th century.
The center sheet portrays Prince Genji as he visited the Imperial Palace on New Year's. He brought many gifts for the ladies of the Palace. He smiles as he gestures at the presents laying on the floor before him, his young attendant taking rolls of silk brocade from a large black lacquer trunk to add to the pile. The items include bolts of cloth wrapped in tissue paper and tied with ribbons, a lacquer box, a pineapple, and a scroll. The princess at right smiles shyly into her kimono sleeve as her attendants express their pleasure.
Kunisada created a lot of prints illustrating different chapters and episodes of "Genji Monogatari". He also was the firs illustrator of the extremely popular illustrated novel "Nise Murasaki Inaka Genji" ("A Fraudulent Murasaki's Rustic Genji"), written by Ryūtei Tanehiko and illustrated by Utagawa Kunisada between 1829–1842, a famous Edo-period parody of the classic Tale of Genji.
The print was made using the Japanese woodblock technique in 1847 during Kunisada's lifetime. All three sheets of the triptych are signed with Kunisada's signature (Kunisada aratame Nidai Toyokuni ga (on right and center sheets), Ōju Kunisada aratame Nidai Toyokuni ga (on left sheet)) and stamped with the publisher's seal of Tsutaya Kichizo (Koeido)
AUTHOR: Utagawa Kunisada I (Toyokuni III)
PUBLISHER: Tsutaya Kichizo (Koeido)
TITLE: "New Year Felicitations at the Palace" (Shunshoku yakata no kotobuki)
PAPER: washi paper
METHOD OF PRINTING: Woodblock printing
PRINTED: Lifetime printing circa 1840s-1850s
PRINT SIZE: Three sheets 14" X 9.3" (28" X 14" altogether)
The condition is good. Great detail and colors, some toning and soiling of the paper. Margins are trimmed. The prints are backed with washi paper. Please see the photos for the detailed conditions.
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