The Satsuma Rebellion - Known in Japanese as the Seinan Senso or Southwestern War, the Satsuma Rebellion took place in 1877 between disaffected former samurai and Meiji Imperial forces. With the fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the Meiji restoration of the Emperor in 1867, the samurai class was abolished, leaving this once ruling class unemployed and impoverished. Led by former Imperial Army General Saigo Takamori, samurai from the Satsuma domain in Kagoshima rebelled against the government, leading to a series of battles that ultimately ended in the defeat of the rebels at the Battle of Shiroyama, with Saigo committing seppuku or ritual suicide. Woodblock prints of the conflict were popular, providing accounts of the latest battles to a public eager for news.

Kirino Toshiaki, 1877 - Great portrait of the samurai Kirino Toshiaki on horseback. A brigadier general in the Imperial Japanese Army, Toshiaki joined the rebel forces under Saigo Takamori's command during the Satsuma Rebellion. He was killed at the Battle of Shiroyama, the final defeat of the rebels. He looks to the side with a stern expression, the wind blowing his hair and tattered personal standard around him, blood dripping from his sword and the wounds on his horse. A dramatic image, nicely detailed. The first time we've seen this subject.

Artist - Kiyochika (1835 - 1900)

Image Size - 14 1/4" x 9 1/2" + margins as shown

Condition - This print with excellent color and detail as shown. A couple thinning areas, repaired. Diagonal folds, wrinkling throughout. Please see photos for details.