Heroes of the Grand Pacification

Download or read book Heroes of the Grand Pacification written by Elena Varshavskaya and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2021-11-15 with total page 189 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The book introduces the print-series Taiheiki eiyū den or Heroic Biographies from the 'Tale of Grand Pacification', designed by Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797–1861), who is considered the founder of the heroic genre in Japanese prints. The series is devoted to the final years of the sixteenth century civil wars and the key figure of the day, Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536?–98). All fifty prints of the series are reproduced in full color. Each print is accompanied by a translation of the extensive texts incorporated into the composition and detailed historical and cultural commentaries. The introductory essay reviews the peculiarities of Kuniyoshi’s warrior images, explores the roots of Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s popularity and discusses the texts in the prints as a source of information on the late medieval warriors’ outlook and battlefield practices.