No. 4: Yoshitsune Leading His Cavalry Down Hiyodori Pass at Ichinotani (Yonkai, Yoshitsune chiryaku Ichinotani Hiyodori-goe saka otoshi), from the series "The Life of Yoshitsune (Yoshitsune ichidaiki no uchi)"
c. 1832/34
Medium
Color woodblock print; oban
Dimensions
25.2 × 36.8 cm (11 1/4 × 14 3/8 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
47445
Art Historical Context
In this vibrant color woodblock print from around 1832–34, Utagawa Hiroshige captures a thrilling moment from Japanese history: No. 4 from his series *The Life ofitsune*. The scene depicts the legendary samurai Minamoto no Yoshitsune leading his cavalry in a daring nighttime descent down the steep Hiyodori Pass Ichinotani Castle. This oban-sized print (25.2 × 36.8 cm) exemplifies Hiroshige's mastery of ukiyo-e, the "pictures of the floating world" genre that flourished in Edo-period Japan, blending dynamic action with poetic landscape elements. Yoshitsune, a 12th-century hero of the Genpei Wa...
About the Artist
Utagawa Hiroshige · 1826–1869
Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858), born Andō Tokutarō, was the last great master of Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock printmaking and one of the most influential landscape artists in history. Born in Edo (modern Tokyo) into a low-ranking samurai family serving as fire wardens, Hiroshige transformed landscape printmaking into a poetic meditation on nature, weather, and everyday life. His revolutionary approac...