In the 3rd month of the year, special tea ceremonies were held in the Inner Palace when guests and hosts played sophisticated games, such as guessing which types of tea were being served, or exchanged roles. In mawaribana guests took turns...
actors; built works; trees; men (male humans); kimonos; hats; hair ornaments; flowers; arrows; bells (idiophones); swords
Actors gather outside the main hall of the Ooku residential area to give a special performance for the new year on the first "horse day" of the 2nd month (according to the zodiac calendar). One actor carries a hunting bird while another actor is...
men (male humans); women; kimonos; military uniforms; chairs; daises; fans (costume accessories); hair ornaments; drums (membranophones); flowers (plants); vases
The emperor and empress sit on the dais in the background overseeing the presentation of the Emperor's Gift Cups to military leaders involved in quelling Saigu's Satsuma Rebellion. Yamagata Aritomo, Commander of the Imperial Army in Kyushu, is...
Two women and a girl prepare musical instruments for a concert. The woman at center holds a lute or biwa, that is ornamented with a plectrum guard featuring a deer under a full moon. The biwa was popular as an accompanying instrument to songs and...
A girl and 7 women watch a performance of noh / no theater in which dancers dressed as 2 Chinese lions / Kara shishi frolic amidst peony flowers. Lion dances / shishi mai have a long history in China and Japan, often associated with protecting a...
Rakugo / "humorous storytelling" is shown in the circular scene, with the narrator seated on a stage before an audience of young and old. A wall poster suggests that this is the famous Enshi Danshuro (1838-1900) who was popular for his tales based...
women; men (male humans); kimonos; military uniforms; drums (membranophones); flutes (aerophones); biwa; swords; fans (costume accessories)
The emperor, empress and five court ladies at right observe a traditional shirabyoshi dancer. While the imperial couple sit in chairs at a table, their attendants kneel on the carpeted verandah. Also on the porch is an enormous flower arrangement...
Akoya, an entertainer in Kyoto’s Kiyomizu zaka pleasure quarters, was mistress to the Heike warrior Taira Kagekiyo (died 1196), who was captured at the Battle of Dan-no-ura in 1185 but had escaped. The Genji commander ordered Hatakeyama Shigetada...
portrait; men (male humans); robes (main garments); stringed instruments (musical instruments); biwa; women; trees
After the Hogen Rebellion in 1156, the courtier and musician Fujiwara no Moronaga (1137-1192) was exiled to the island of Shikoku. That autumn he consoled himself with a visit to Mt. Miyaji. Yoshitoshi depicts Fujiwara no Moronaga playing a biwa by...
portrait; men (male humans); robes (main garments); stringed instruments (musical instruments); biwa; women; trees
After the Hogen Rebellion in 1156, the courtier and musician Fujiwara no Moronaga (1137-1192) was exiled to the island of Shikoku. That autumn he consoled himself with a visit to Mt. Miyaji. Yoshitoshi depicts Fujiwara no Moronaga playing a biwa...
The actor Ichikawa Danjûrô IX as Benkei in the kabuki play Kanjincho. Ichikawa Danjûrô IX (1839-1903) was one of the key figures in the move to modernize Kabuki performance in the Meiji era (1868-1911) and was a friend of Yoshitoshi. The plot...
