Chûshingura Prints

In 1702, Lord Asano of Akô was provoked by Kira Kozukenosuke Yoshinaka into drawing his sword in the shogun’s palace, for which he was forced to take his own life, and his estate was confiscated.  Forty-seven of Lord Asano’s retainers, who were now rônin (samurai without masters), planned and carried out a successful attack on Kira’s palace.  Kira’s head was cut off with the same dagger Lord Asano used to commit seppuku.  (The term ‘hara-kiri’, although more common in English than ‘seppuku’, is considered in Japan to be a vulgar and disrespectful description of an honorable act.).  The 46 surviving rônin were forced to take their own lives.  These events were made into the play, ‘Kanadehon Chûshingura’.

Series

Date

Robinson*

Robinson‡

Kanadehon Chûshingura

1835

unlisted

unlisted

Kanadehon Chûshingura

1847

169

unlisted

‘Stories of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Samurai’, is reproduced in the book Kuniyoshi: The Faithful Samurai by David R. Weinberg (Hotei Publishing, Leiden, The Netherlands, 2000)

1847-1848

72

S54

Origins of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Samurai (Seichû gishi hottan)

1848

72

S55

‘Stories of Faithful Hearts and True Loyalty’ is reproduced in the book Kuniyoshi: The Faithful Samurai by David R. Weinberg (Hotei Publishing, Leiden, The Netherlands, 2000)

1848

72

S56

Comparison of the High Renown of the Loyal Retainers & Faithful Samurai (Chûshin gishi kômei kurabe)

1848

78

S57

Stories of the Faithful Samurai of the Red Castle (Sekijô gishi den)

1848

83

S58

Mirror of the Faithful Samurai and Loyal Retainers (Gishi chûshin kagami)

1848

82

S59

Mirror of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Retainers (Seichû gishin kagami)

1851

unlisted

S71

Twelve Acts of the Lantern Chûshingura (Ju-ni dan shoku Kanadehon Chûshingura)

1852

218

unlisted

Portraits of the Faithful Samurai of True Loyalty (Seichû gishi shôzô)

1853

79

S78

True Portraits of the Faithful Samurai (Gishi shinzô)

1853

75

S80

‘Kanadehon Chûshingura’ is available on another website

1854-1855

69

S86

Mirror of the True Loyalty of the Faithful Retainers, Individually (Seichû gishin meimei kagami)

1857

77

S90

* ‘Robinson 1961’ indicates listing in Kuniyoshi by Basil William Robinson (Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1961).

‡ ‘Robinson 1982’ indicates listing in Kuniyoshi: The Warrior-Prints by Basil William Robinson (Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, 1982) and its unpublished supplement.

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