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Katsura-hime holding the Tiger Scroll, by Totoya Hokkei

Image attached to P.348-1937

An image of Katsura-hime holding the Tiger Scroll. Hokkei, Totoya (Japanese, 1780-1850). Surimono. Colour woodblock print with blind-embossing and metallic pigments. c.1830. Signed: Hokkei. Artist’s seals: Aoi(ga); Oka. Ukiyo-e. Notes: From the series Akabaneren (The Akabane poetry group), seven prints from which are known. The fan-shaped Akabane symbol is seen at the upper right. The prints may have been issued over several years as the styles and subjects differ. This print was probably made for the Year of the Tiger, 1830. Katsura-hime (often confused with Joruri-hime), was daughter of Kiichi Hogen, a military expert entrusted with the keeping of an ancient Chinese treatise on martial strategies known as the Tiger Scroll. In order to gain access to the scroll and its secrets, the famous warrior Minamoto no Yoshitsune (1159-1189) posed as a student and serenaded Katsura with his flute. She fell in love with him and eventually succumbed to his request that she bring him the scroll. The cranes on the black kimono were a symbol of longevity found on many surimono.

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About this image

Katsura-hime holding the Tiger Scroll. Hokkei, Totoya (Japanese, 1780-1850). Surimono. Colour woodblock print with blind-embossing and metallic pigments. c.1830. Signed: Hokkei. Artist’s seals: Aoi(ga); Oka. Ukiyo-e. Notes: From the series Akabaneren (The Akabane poetry group), seven prints from which are known. The fan-shaped Akabane symbol is seen at the upper right. The prints may have been issued over several years as the styles and subjects differ. This print was probably made for the Year of the Tiger, 1830. Katsura-hime (often confused with Joruri-hime), was daughter of Kiichi Hogen, a military expert entrusted with the keeping of an ancient Chinese treatise on martial strategies known as the Tiger Scroll. In order to gain access to the scroll and its secrets, the famous warrior Minamoto no Yoshitsune (1159-1189) posed as a student and serenaded Katsura with his flute. She fell in love with him and eventually succumbed to his request that she bring him the scroll. The cranes on the black kimono were a symbol of longevity found on many surimono.

Image data

  • Accession Number: P.348-1937
  • Photograph copyright © The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.
  • Aperture: f/19.0
  • Focal length: 120
  • Camera: Hasselblad H3DII-31
  • Photographer name: Michael Jones
  • Image height: 1024 pixels
  • Image width: 911 pixels
  • Processed with: Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5.0 (Windows)
  • Filesize: 0.96MB
  • Exposure time: 1/125
  • ISO Speed: 100
  • Fnumber: 19/1
  • Captured: 2018:10:24 15:13:07

Key words

19th Century birds blind embossing colour printing costume crane cranes embossed embossing fans female Fitz_PDP gofun hair hairstyle Japanese karazuri Katsura-hime kimono lady longevity metallic pigment pigment poetry poets print scrolls surimono tiger scroll Totoya Hokkei ukiyo-e verses warriors woman woodblock woodcut

Colours in this image

rgb(217,204,162), rgb(154,108,81), rgb(79,76,65), rgb(146,139,116), rgb(167,127,88), rgb(180,175,143), rgb(190,146,112), rgb(238,229,195), rgb(187,170,121), rgb(233,219,196), rgb(116,140,136)

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The Fitzwilliam Museum (2024) "Katsura-hime holding the Tiger Scroll, by Totoya Hokkei " Web page available at: https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/image/media-218453 Accessed: 2024-12-23 14:04:31

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{{cite web|url=https://collection.beta.fitz.ms/id/image/media-218453 |title=Katsura-hime holding the Tiger Scroll, by Totoya Hokkei |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2024-12-23 14:04:31|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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<div class="text-center">
    <figure class="figure">
        <img src="https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/imagestore/pdp/pdp82/p_348_1937_201810_mfj22_dc2.jpg"
        alt="Katsura-hime holding the Tiger Scroll"
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        <figcaption class="figure-caption text-info">Katsura-hime holding the Tiger Scroll, by Totoya Hokkei </figcaption>
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