Tomoe Gozen and Xiang Yu, Katsushika Hokusai

Artwork Overview

Katsushika Hokusai, Tomoe Gozen and Xiang Yu
Katsushika Hokusai, Tomoe Gozen and Xiang Yu
Katsushika Hokusai
Tomoe Gozen and Xiang Yu
1820, Edo period (1600–1868)
Katsushika Hokusai
1760–1849
Tomoe Gozen and Xiang Yu, 1820, Edo period (1600–1868)
Where object was made: Japan
Material/technique: color woodcut
Dimensions:
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 220 x 190 mm
Image Dimensions Height/Width (Height x Width): 86 5/8 x 74 13/16 in
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 19 x 14 in
Credit line: William Bridges Thayer Memorial
Accession number: 0000.1395
Not on display
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Label texts

Archive Label 2003: In this fanciful print, the third-century BCE Chinese general Xiang Yu is paired with the twelfth-century Japanese woman warrior Tomoe Gozen. The two legendary heroes compete not physically, but in a calligraphy contest. Xiang Yu boldly writes the characters for Japan while holding a heavy bronze cauldron over his head. Outdoing the ferocious general not in physical feats but in poetic spirit, Lady Tomoe displays her calligraphy in a graceful, flowing script. It reads “The strength of the breeze of Tomoe’s fan blows the fragrance of the plum blossom higher than the cauldron.” The Edo period (1600-1868) was a long period of peace in Japan. During this peaceful era, the government propagated the ideal of cultivating the literary as well as the martial arts among members of the warrior class, or samurai. As demonstrated in the examples shown here, which are popular prints made for the general public, such ideals made their way into the broader Edo culture as well.

Exhibitions

Hokusai: Local Selections from the Spencer Museum of Art, Richardson-North Collection, and the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
, curator
2024–2025
Surimono Prints from the Collection of the Spencer Museum of Art
1991
Surimono: Privately Published Japanese Prints
Roger Keyes, curator
1986
Surimono: Privately Published Japanese Prints
Roger Keyes, curator
1986
Surimono: Privately Published Japanese Prints
Roger Keyes, curator
1984

Citations

Keyes, Roger, and Carol Shankel, Project Director. Surimono: Privately Published Japanese Prints in the Spencer Museum of Art. Tokyo, New York, San Francisco: Kodansha International Ltd, 1984.