Picture sugoroku board game of actors in supernatural roles

Object Details

• Artist

  Toyohara Kunichika 豊原国周 (1835-1900)

• Block carver

  Ota Tashichi (Komakichi) 太田多七 (active ca. 1834-1882)

• Publisher

  Hiranoya Shinzo 平野屋新蔵

• Label

  A simplified, pictorial version of the board game sugoroku has existed since the thirteenth century but became more popular during the Edo period (1603–1868), when printed editions were widely and cheaply available. Picture sugoroku resembles the game Snakes and Ladders, as players roll dice and progress around the board. In this example, the squares are illustrated with various supernatural characters familiar to players from kabuki, such as the spirit of the earth spider in the top center.

• Collection

  National Museum of Asian Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Staging the Supernatural: Ghosts and the Theater in Japanese Prints (March 23 to October 6, 2024)

• Origin

  Japan

• Credit Line

  The Pearl and Seymour Moskowitz Collection

• Type

  Print

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1700s, 1710s, 1720s, 1770s, 1780s, 1790s, 1730s, 1740s, 1750s, 1760s, 1800s, 1810s, 1820s, 1830s, 1610s, 1650s, 1640s, 1630s, 1620s, 1690s, 1840s, 1680s, 1850s, 1860s, 1670s, 1660s

• Name

  Toyohara, Kunichika, Ota, Komakichi, Hiranoya, Shinzo

• Place

  Japan

• Topic

  Art, Actors and actresses, Edo period, Japan, (1600 - 1868), Japanese Art, The Pearl and Seymour Moskowitz Collection

• Culture

  Japanese

• Object Type

  Prints