Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art

About this Work

Kubo Shunman was not only the designer but also one of the poets for this print. Although the precise identification of the figures—perhaps a yamabushi, or mountain ascetic, and a courtesan—is difficult to determine, the underlying story is loosely based on the legends of Mt. Ōye and the band of heroes associated with the Minamoto family. The kyōka poetry (mad verse) on the print is similarly obscure, with many puns and references that only the intended audience would have understood. However, the references to spring are clear enough to place this surimono within the tradition of New Year’s publications.

Poem:

The sun
Redder than the sake bowls
Shines full on
The great sea
The first tide of the morning
—Senshurō Katamaru

Celebrating with the spiced cake
The three days of the New Year
Accompanied by the relish
Of herring roe
And fried burdock
—Kinsatei Joran

When Spring comes
The song of the warbler is heard
Echoing in the valleys
Going from hilltop to hilltop
In Yamamba’s mountains
—Don-don tei Wataru

Picking
The field horsetails
Growing along the road to Ikuno
I see the brush
But I have not yet seen the letter
—Rinshūtei Tsurayoshi

The firewood carriers
Follow the snow-melted road
Going into the spring mountains,
The trumpet shell sounds the noon time
(by Senshūan Sandarū Bōshi)