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Hanga Monogatari, Osaka (2026)

Online art gallery dedicated to Japanese prints:
I collect, sell, and share the story behind each piece, expressing my interest in them in my spare time.

05/07/2026

『Before strength is tested, silence commands the ring. 🏯🤼』

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Author: Utagawa Kuniteru II (二代歌川国輝)
Subject: Sumo Wrestler Sakaigawa (境川) and Gyōji Shikimori Inosuke (式守伊之助).
Series: Stand-alone sumō roster print.
Genre: Sumō-e (相撲絵), Nishiki-e (錦絵).
Publisher: Wakasaya Yoichi (若狭屋與市) here signed Wakayoita (若与板).
Size: Ōban (大判).
Period: March 1873 (Meiji 6).

More info ⬇️
https://www.hangamonogatari.com/artist.php?artist=Utagawa_Kuniteru_II&artwork=utagawa.kuniteruII.1

Other works ➡️ link in Bio

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🇬🇧 This surviving two-sheet section of a triptych depicts the ceremonial moments immediately before a sumo bout. At the centre stands the distinguished gyōji Shikimori Inosuke, while wrestler Sakaigawa crouches in the traditional sonkyo stance.

The missing left sheet originally portrayed Ayasegawa, completing the balanced composition. Rather than focusing on the clash itself, Kuniteru II celebrates the ritual, discipline and dignity that define professional sumo during the early Meiji period.

🇯🇵 本図は三枚続のうち二枚が現存する相撲絵で、取組直前の仕切りの場面を描いています。

中央には行司・式守伊之助、右には力士・境川が蹲踞の姿勢で描かれ、失われた左図には綾瀬川が配されていました。二代歌川国輝は、勝負そのものではなく、相撲における礼法と緊張感を巧みに表現しています。

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25/06/2026

『🥋 Can you spot the strongest wrestler of Meiji Japan? Discover a sumō roster frozen in time.』

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Author: Attributable to Utagawa Kunisada II (二代歌川国貞), or possibly a posthumous edition based on revised woodblocks originally designed by Utagawa Kunisada I (歌川国貞). Signed Ichiyōsai Toyokuni hitsu (一陽斎豊国筆).
Subject: Great Mirror of Japan's Sumo Wrestlers (Dai Nippon Ōzumō Sekitori Kagami, 大日本大相撲関取鏡).
Series: Stand-alone sumō roster print.
Genre: Sumō-e (相撲絵), Nishiki-e (錦絵).
Publisher: Wakasaya Yoichi (若狭屋與市).
Size: Ōban diptych (大版二枚続).
Period: March 1873 (Meiji 6).

More info ⬇️
https://www.hangamonogatari.com/artist.php?artist=kunisadaII&artwork=kunisadaII6

Other works ➡️ link in Bio

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🇬🇧 This impressive diptych gathers many of the leading professional sumō wrestlers of early Meiji Japan. Each figure is identified by name, creating a visual record of the sport's elite at a time when Japan was rapidly modernizing.

Combining portraiture, ranking information, and popular entertainment, the print reflects the enduring appeal of sumō during one of the country's most transformative eras.

The print is signed "Ichiyōsai Toyokuni hitsu" (一陽斎豊国筆) and dated March 1873 (Meiji 6), nearly a decade after the death of Utagawa Kunisada I. It is therefore most likely attributable to Utagawa Kunisada II, who continued the Toyokuni lineage during the early Meiji period. An alternative possibility is that the print represents a posthumous publication based on woodblocks originally designed by Kunisada I and subsequently revised to update the list of wrestlers and publication details. In the absence of a publisher's catalogue or a contemporary reference explicitly crediting the artist, both hypotheses remain plausible.

🇯🇵 この二枚続の相撲絵には、明治初期に活躍した人気力士たちが数多く描かれています。力士の名前がそれぞれ記されており、当時の番付や相撲界の様子を知ることができます。近代化が進む時代の中でも、人々に親しまれ続けた相撲文化の魅力を伝える作品です。

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14/06/2026

『 🩵 Fresh from the bath, she gazes beyond the horizon: what is she searching for? 🌊 』

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- Kajita Hanko (梶田半古).
- Taking a bath (yuami, 湯浴み).
- c. 1908

More info ⬇️
https://www.hangamonogatari.com/artist.php?artist=hanko&artwork=hanko4

Other works ➡️ link in Bio

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13/06/2026

『📖🇯🇵 From Benkei to General Fukushima Yasumasa: how did Meiji Japan teach history, loyalty, and courage through art? ⚔️』

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Author: Ogata Kōichi (尾形耕一).
Subject : Album of Human Figures for Boys (Shōnen Jinbutsu Gafu, 少年人物画譜).
Genre: Gafu (画譜), Educational illustration (kyōiku-ga, 教育画), Historical figures (rekishijibutsu-ga, 歴史人物画).
Publisher: Gakuyūkan (学友館).
Size: Kobon (小本) 10,5 cm x 15 cm ( 4,13 x 5,9 inches).
Period: December 11th 1896 (Meiji 29). First published October 10th 1895 (Meiji 28).

More info ⬇️
https://www.hangamonogatari.com/artist.php?artist=e_hon&artwork=ogataK1

Other works ➡️ link in Bio

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🇬🇧 Shōnen Jinbutsu Gafu ("Album of Human Figures for Boys") is an educational drawing manual published during the Meiji period by Gakuyūkan in Tokyo.

Illustrated by Ogata Kōichi, the volume was probably designed to teach students how to draw human figures while simultaneously introducing them to important historical, legendary, military, and everyday subjects.

The book contains studies of famous heroes such as Benkei, Kusunoki Masashige, Mori Ranmaru, and General Fukushima Yasumasa, alongside samurai, soldiers, noblemen, labourers, and common townspeople.

This combination reflects the educational ideals of late Meiji Japan, where artistic training, moral education, and patriotism were closely connected.

Rather than presenting finished artworks, the illustrations serve as practical drawing models, making the volume an important example of Japanese art education at the end of the nineteenth century.

🇯🇵 尾形耕一によって制作され、少年たちが人物の描き方を学ぶための教材として用いられました。

本書には、弁慶、楠木正成、森蘭丸、福島安正などの歴史上の人物をはじめ、武士、軍人、公家、町人、労働者など多様な人物像が収録されています。

これらの図版は、単なる鑑賞作品ではなく、写生や模写のための実用的な手本として制作されました。

歴史教育・道徳教育・美術教育が結び付けられていた明治後期の教育思想を伝える貴重な資料であり、日本近代美術教育史を知るうえでも興味深い作品です。

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31/05/2026

『⚔️ From Kurama’s mountains to Dan-no-Ura’s waves—follow Yosh*tsune’s legendary journey through a Meiji-era illustrated book. 📖🌊』

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Subject : Biography of Yosh*tsune (Ehon Yosh*tsune ichidaiki. Zen., 絵本義経一代記全).
Genre: Illustrated popular historical biography (Ichidaiki mono, 一代記物).
Publisher: 牧金之助 (Maki Kinnosuke)
Imprint: 金寿堂 (Kinjudō), Tokyo
Size: Kobon (小本) 11,5 cm x 8 cm ( 4,52 x 3,14 inches).
Period: October 8th 1892 (Meiji 25).

More info, pics & works ➡️ link in Bio

https://www.hangamonogatari.com/artist.php?artist=e_hon&artwork=ehon2

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🇬🇧 A Meiji-era illustrated chronicle of one of Japan’s most legendary warrior.

It recounts the life of Minamoto no Yosh*tsune through dramatic illustrations and short narratives.

Among the episodes depicted are Ushiwakamaru’s sword training at Mount Kurama, his legendary meeting with Benkei at Gojō Bridge, the attack at Ichi-no-Tani, scenes from the Battle of Dan-no-Ura, the night attack on the Horikawa Palace, and the famous Ataka Barrier encounter.

More than a simple picture book, it offers a fascinating glimpse into how Yosh*tsune's legend was retold for Meiji-period readers over 130 years ago.

🇯🇵 明治時代に出版された義経伝の絵入り物語。

源義経の生涯を挿絵とともに紹介する小型の絵本です。

鞍馬山での牛若丸の剣術修行、五条橋での弁慶との出会い、一ノ谷攻め、壇ノ浦合戦、堀川御所への夜討ち、そして安宅関での富樫との問答など、義経伝説を代表する場面が描かれています。

130年以上前の読者に語られた義経像を今に伝える、貴重な明治期の出版物です。

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住所

Osaka, Osaka