Comment - Uncut single sheet omocha-e, with four segments, overwritten in the small curly cartouche on top as "Set No. 5" (Go seki, 五席). This toy print is depicting on upper right four warrior quartets, on lower left, four sumo wrestler quartets, on lower right four artist quartets, and a segment with nine classical kite designs on lower left. All  segments are overwritten with "Yamaguchi Version" (To Yamaguchi-ban, ト山口版).

• The upper right four warrior quartets are overwritten with "Shin-ban musha tsukusi" (志ん板むしゃ尽), and shows famous warriors, each of them with an abbreviated short desription or name.
  
• The upper left four quartets are overwritten with " Shin-ban sumō tsukusi" (志ん板すもう尽), and shows sumo wrestlers with their ceremonial loincloth (Keshō-mawashi, 化粧回し). The names of the sumo stars are written on their respective mawashi-loincloth.
• The lower right four quartets are overwritten with "Shin-ban musha tsukusi" (志ん板むしゃ尽), and shows different artists with their respective utensils, instruments etc..
  
• The lower left nine pictures are overwritten with "Shin-ban tako-e tsukushi" (志ん板たこえ尽), and shows nine classical kite designs for edo kites or edo-kaku kites.
• the upper right design shows a daruma face
• the upper middle shows a kanji character for "Dragon" (Ryū, 龍)
• the upper left shows a warrior with elaborate head gear
• the center right shows a variation of the Japanese flag, often to be seen on classical kite woodblock prints, for instance 1, 2, 3, 4 ...
  
• the center middle shows a grumpy looking person with a hoodlike soft bonnet
• the center left shows another kanji kite design
• the lower right shows a red faced fighter, maybe a grown up Kintaro
• the lower middle shows another kanji kite design with the character for "Storm" (Arashi, 嵐)
  
• the lower left shows a red sun with a crane on it, the traditional motif of Asahina. Compare the kite on Chikanobu's woodblock print of "A Parody of the Soga Brothers Performed by Children"
  

Please compare this print with the the small edo kite chiyogami from an unknown woodblock artist of the Meiji-era.

Series - ~


Artist - see Biography


Signature - Hachisuka KUNIAKI (蜂須賀 国明) in rectangular cassette on selvage , upper part of lower left segment; the address of his studio (Gakō, 画工 ) is illegible

Publisher -  Arakawa (荒川) in rectangular cassette on selvage in lower part of left segment, with complete address (九八ニ五 馬喰町ニ丁目 藤兵街)


Image Size - 24.4 X  36.8cm   (9 5/8" x 14 1/2")


Condition - single sheet; nishiki-e (cloured woodblock); omocha-e (toy print); vertical ôban (ôban tate-e); some wormholes