Paul Binnie

dai oban tate-e 18 1/4 by 12 3/8 in., 46.5 by 31.5 cm

This composition is the fifth in the series Kabuki juhachiban (The Famous 18 plays) and depicts the titular hero from the play Sukeroku (Sukeroku). At the beginning of the play, Sukeroku is a misunderstood ne'er-do-well. To his mother and brother, he is disinterested in avenging his father's death and instead only cares about spending his nights at the pleasure quarters with the beautiful courtesan Agemaki. To the other courtesans, he is unduly combative, constantly getting into fights with other patrons. In fact, he spending his days in the pleasure quarters looking for the man who murdered his father and stole his ancestral sword. Sukeroku constantly goads other patrons not because he is arrogant but in the hopes they will draw their sword, thus revealing whether or not they are the man he is looking for. This strategy is remarkably successful, as he soon identifies the samurai Ikyu as his father's killer. Sukeroku bests Ikyu in a duel, killing the older warrior and restoring honor to his family.

References:
Arendie and Henk Herwig, Heroes of the Kabuki Stage, 2004, pp. 102-108 (re: play)
Paul Binnie: A Dialogue with the Past - The First 100 Japanese Prints, 2007, p. 64, no. 22
(inv. no. C-0915)

price: $650