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.

Comments - Terrific image from the Satsuma Rebellion of Saigo Takamori, the leader of the rebel samurai, and his men at Kagoshima. Saigo sits on a wooden chair at right, wearing a military uniform and striped pants tucked into tall leather boots, looking sternly over his shoulder as a messenger reports, kneeling at his side. In the center, a warrior waits atop his horse while at left, an explosion lights up the night with a red-orange light, a rider in silhouette before the glow. The burst sends up a shower of debris, and clouds of smoke drift along the horizon. A striking subject with wonderful detail in the expressive faces.

Artist - Kiyochika (1835 - 1900)

Image Size - 14 1/8" x 28 1/4" + top margin as shown

Condition - This print with good detail as shown. Three separate panels. Horizontal centerfold, vertical and diagonal folds. A few holes, thinning areas, repaired. Creasing, staining. Please see photos for details.