Comment - Scene of three groups of people enjoying the festivities at New Year's Day, with many colorful kites flying overhead. A pair of street musicians stands at right, the beauty cradling a shamisen in her arm and small hand drum tied around the back of the man before her. At left, a woman dressed in a beautiful iris patterned kimono carries a battledore for "hanetsuki" a traditional game similar to badminton. A dwarf stands in front of her, looking up at a samurai who glares at him angrily. Mount Fuji rises above the treetops at far right, the base softly shaded in pale green.

The array of kites includes many different designs. The far left is an Edo kite ("Edo-tako", "江戸凧") with white kanji characters and a blueish background (Kanji kite, "ji tako", "字凧"). Next is a yakko kite ("yakko dako", "奴凧") or man kite. Another Kanji kite ("ji tako", "字凧") flies near the pagoda. A pair of bird-of prey kites ("tonbi dako", "鳶凧" or "kite kite") is flying in front of a house in the backgrund. Underneath the New Year's decorations and the treasure boat with the blue sail, just directly on the left shoulder of the person with the blue yukata coat, is a small kite with the smiling face of Okame ("阿亀"), the goddess of dawn, mirth and revelry. Daruma, the father of Zen Buddhism grins from an Edo kite above. A Kanji kite ("ji tako", "字凧") is entangled in the string of the Daruma kite ("Daruma dako", "達磨凧"). Three other Edo kites (two kanji kites and a portrait kite) are swaying above the musicians in the right woodblock panel.

Every panel of this triptych shows the same three kabuki stars, namely Bandō Takesaburō (坂東竹三郎), Nakamura Fukusuke (中村福助), and Onue Kikujirō (尾上菊次郎). Every panel shows them in a different rôle. The series title is in the rectangular cassette on the upper right panel. The title of the triptych  ("Springtime in the Lamplight") is written on the adjoinig fan like cassette.


Series - "The Four Seasons" ("Shiki no uchi", "四季之内")


Artist - see Biography


Signature - Toyokuni ga (豊国 画), in streched oval brownish-red toshidama cartouche (Otoshidama-in, 年玉印), on all panels


Publisher - Otaya Takichi (太田屋多吉); whiteish publisher's seal (rectangle), oval wooblock cutter's seal, and circular censor's seal, all adjoing KUNISADA's red brown cloured signature cassettes


Image Size - 72.1 X 34.9 cm (28 3/8" x 13 3/4") + margins as shown


Condition - triptych, three single panels; nishiki-e (cloured woodblock); Vertical ôban (ôban tate-e);