Nakamura Tomijūrō II as the Wife (Nyōbō) Oryū, actually the Spirit of a Willow Tree (Yanagi no sei) (R), Ichikawa Danjūrō VIII as the Woodcutter (Kikori) Magosaku (C), and Nakamura Nakasuke II as the Villain (Warumono) Iwamatsu (L) 「女房おりう実柳ノ精」　二代目中村富十郎 「樵夫孫さく」 市川団十郎 「悪者岩松」 中村仲助

Object Details

• Artist

  Utagawa Kunisada 歌川国貞 (1786-1865)

• Publisher

  Kiya Sojiro 木屋宗次郎 (active 1851-1904)

• Block carver

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

• Label

  When an imperial falcon becomes entangled in the branches of a willow tree during a hunt, a kindly man named Heitarō intervenes to prevent the tree from being cut down. Shortly after, he meets a beautiful woman, Oryū, who bears him a son. Several years later, woodcutters return for the tree, and this time they cannot be stopped. Before vanishing, Oryū (right) reveals herself to have been the grateful spirit of the willow all along—the swirling leaves around her hinting at her true nature.

  right: Nakamura Tomijūrō II as the Wife (Nyōbō) Oryū, actually the Spirit of a Willow Tree (Yanagi no sei)

  center: Ichikawa Danjūrō VIII as the Woodcutter (Kikori) Magosaku

  left: Nakamura Nakasuke II as the Villain (Warumono) Iwamatsu

• 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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Keep Exploring

• 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, 1850s, 1680s, 1670s, 1860s, 1660s

• Name

  Ota, Komakichi, Utagawa, Kunisada, Kiya, Sojiro

• Place

  Japan

• Topic

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

• Culture

  Japanese

• Object Type

  Prints