Utagawa Kuniyoshi, "Tatenaka Kanbee Shigeharu"

Once a foe to Oda Nobunaga, Tatenaka Kanbee Shigeharu (Takenaka Hanbee Shigeharu) would later align with the Oda clan and serve under Toyotomi Hideyoshi as his chief strategist and advisor. Here, Shigeharu's adherence to scientific analysis of military strategy is reflected in the celestial globe on the floor. Indeed, it is known that early military strategists in China aligned their planning with celestial bodies, and here Kuniyoshi depicts Shigeharu as a practitioner of such an approach to war. 

Kuniyoshi's Taiheiki eiyu den chronicles the period of civil war in 16th century Japan in the years leading up to the unification of Japan under the Tokugawa Shogunate. Composed of fifty woodblock prints, Kuniyoshi's Taiheiki contains some of the artist's most iconic designs. The historical names (in parentheses) of the figures depicted have been altered to avoid censorship during the Edo-period.

Series: Heroes of the Grand Pacification (Taiheiki)
Date: 1848
Size: Oban
Publisher: Yamamoto-ya Heikichi
Condition: Small stain top edge, binding holes, otherwise excellent color and condition
Frame Shown: 16" x 24" x 1/2", Classic Wood, Ebony Walnut

Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798-1861) is one of Japan's greatest masters of ukiyo-e printmaking from the Edo period. Many of Kuniyoshi's works are regarded today as archetypes of woodblock prints produced during the Edo period and highly prized by collectors.