KUNIYOSHI

Two characters from the Popularized “Romance of the Three Kingdoms”

This is a print based on the “Romance of the Three Kingdoms” by Utagawa KUNIYOSHI (1797-1861). “Romance of the Three Kingdoms” by Luo Guanzhong  in the 14th century is based on the events at the end of the Han Dynasty between the years 169 and 280. It is the story of three states that emerged from the remnants of the Han Dynasty trying to replace the dwindling Han Dynasty and/ or restore it. The novel deals with the plots, personal and army battles, intrigues, and struggles of these states to achieve dominance during these years.

This print is also a part of the collection called The Twenty-four Chinese Paragons of Filial Piety. Each print in the collection depicts a hero for the Twelve Signs.

This photo shows the fighting between two warriors on a hillside. The warriors depicted in this print are Chôkô and Chô-un. I only know that Chôkô was one of the heroes for the Twelve Signs.  Unfortunately I could not find any information on Chô-un so we can assume that Chô-un is fighting for the wrong reasons.

Both warriors are wearing very detailed battle armor with vivid colors with hairy hands and beards. The print captures them in the moment of them clashing their weapons together. They are fighting on a hillside that is covered with what appears to be lava and surrounded by smoke. It is hard to make out separate figures and makes them appear to be one. Both faces are drawn Western-like which signifies that these prints are meant for the West to buy. Chôkô’s face is intense with his gaze upon Chô-un while Chô-un has a malicious laugh with an outward gaze. Chô-un’s face is red which connotes evil because his red face looks like that of a devil. In the middle of the battle is a sharp black line that separates the two figures. One side of the line makes the print darker which is Chô-un’s side and the other side is the lighter side which is Chôkô’s which connotes good and evil as well. The fact that darker side is much smaller than lighter side signifies that good will defeat evil in this fight.

The condition of the print is in a pretty good one. Most of the lines are sharp, the colors fit inside all of the lines, and the colors are vivid with no sign fading. However there is one crease and some stains on the right side which make the Japanese words unreadable.

This print ultimately depicts the classic battle of good versus evil by using two characters from the “Romance of the Three Kingdoms”.