Comments - Interesting triptych divided diagonally to present two different kabuki scenes. At left, the evil magician Nikki Danjo, who transformed himself into a rat to steal an incriminating scroll, returns to human form with a magical gesture of his hands, the scroll caught between his teeth. While Danjo was in rat form, the faithful retainer Otokonosuke I struck him with his fan, resulting in the bleeding cut on Danjo's forehead. At right is a scene from the from the famous tale of the Fox Lady, Kuzunoha. The nobleman Abe no Yasuna once rescued a fox by battling the hunter who had trapped it. The fox returned to visit him as a beautiful young lady named Kuzunoha in order to tend the wound he sustained in the fight. They married and had a child, but Kuzunoha's son caught a glimpse of her true form, so she decided to leave her family. Here, she tenderly holds their sleeping child as she writes a farewell poem to her husband on a shoji screen, using a brush in her mouth. Played by Kawarazaki Gonjuro I, Abe no Yasuna crouches behind the screen in the center, a troubled expression on his face. A handsome design, nicely detailed with burnishing in the black collars and fan, and embossing in the white kimono collar.

Artist - Kunichika (1835 - 1900)

Image Size - 13 3/4" x 28" + margins as shown

Condition - This print with excellent color and detail as shown. Three separate panels, backed with paper. Slight soiling. Please see photos for details. Good overall.