17th May, 2024 10:00
UTAGAWA KUNIYOSHI (1797 – 1861)
1855
Yoshitsune and his nineteen Loyal Retainers
Oban tate-e triptych, published by Izumi-ya Ichibei, depicting young Minamoto no Yoshitsune with a tiger skin sword sheath, standing on the deck of a warship surrounded by his vassals, on the prow, leading the magnificent ship into the dark night stands Benkei, the warrior monk and Yoshitsune’s first supporter, the magnificent boat with a canopied deck bearing Yoshitsune’s mon glides into the mist, with waves resembling claws splash against its sides, the bulging sail fills with wind whilst the men below discuss the battle strategy
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PROVENANCE:
English Private Collection
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NOTE:
The image is likely to illustrate moments before the battle of Dan-no-Ura on 25th of April 1185. At the time Taira clan, the dominant political power, fled the capital with the seven-year-old Emperor Antoku, his family and the imperial regalia to seek shelter among the armada of ships docked on the Dan-no-Ura bay. As the battle turned against the Taira clan and they faced inevitable defeat, emperor Antoku’s grandmother, Lady Tokiko, jumped over the board with the boy in her arms saying, ‘in the depths of the ocean we have a capital’. Their loyal retainers instantly followed them into the depths.
Sold for £403
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