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Onoye Matsusuke I as Matsushita Mikinojō, the father of Miyagino, a portrait of whom we have seen in the preceding number.
It has been said that the white hair which is so conspicuous in this print, and so unusual, must indicate that the character portrayed could only be Hakuhatsu, or White-Haired, Ganryū, another rôle which Matsusuke played in the same production; but the collection of theatrical documents in Boston contains illustrated play-bills showing that Ganryū’s white hair was worn combed back and reached down to his shoulders. We hope that the new identification which now seems the only possible one, may not be pounced on by some other fact that, for all we know, may be lurking somewhere, crouched and ready to spring.
The robe of the actor is in dark green with a lighter green at the wrist. In the sword hilt there are touches of rose and yellow and the last-mentioned of these colors appears again in the wooden part of the closed fan.
The inscription is supposed to have been written by Ueyda Shikibuchi (1819–1879). It describes the resourcefulness of Matsusuke as a man and speaks of his fame as an impersonator of old women, the intriguing Iwafuji, male malefactors of rank and rich men addicted to high living. The actor died in 1815 and therefore could not have been known personally to the writer who, however, may have found the print in his father’s collection and heard all about Matsusuke as the family were huddled about their hibachi on some winter evening long ago.
In less careful impressions the shading on the chin and elsewhere is omitted. In some, the word “Matsu” in Matsusuke’s mon is covered by the green used for the kimono. The one shown here was picked from seven in American collections, and was last reproduced as number 41 of the Jacquin Catalogue. The subject has been reproduced in the Vignier-Inada Catalogue, number 273, as Rumpf number 3, by Kurth, Nakata and Noguchi, and in several other books and catalogues.
Ōban. Dark mica ground. Signed: Tōshūsai Sharaku.
The Art Institute of Chicago (Buckingham Collection).
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