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見立て美人猿回し
Monkey trainers were among the many kinds of itinerant performers who could be hired to entertain a crowd on the street or a party at a private home. In real life, monkey trainers were poor, plainly dressed, and usually male. But in this imaginary scene, they are beautiful young ladies in elegant long-sleeved kimono. The well-trained monkeys are enacting a scene from the famous Kabuki play Sukeroku. From left to right, they represent the commoner hero Sukeroku; his sweetheart, the courtesan Agemaki; and his rival, the villainous samurai Hige no Ikyü.
Women with Performing Monkeys
見立て美人猿回し
Japanese
Edo period
Medium/Technique
Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper
Dimensions
Vertical ôban triptych; 35.6 x 73.7 cm (14 x 29 in.)
Credit Line
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston—Worcester Art Museum exchange, made possible through the Special Korean Pottery Fund, Museum purchase with funds donated by contribution, and Smithsonian Institution—Chinese Expedition, 1923–24
Accession Number54.211-3
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsAsia, Prints and Drawings
ClassificationsPrints
Monkey trainers were among the many kinds of itinerant performers who could be hired to entertain a crowd on the street or a party at a private home. In real life, monkey trainers were poor, plainly dressed, and usually male. But in this imaginary scene, they are beautiful young ladies in elegant long-sleeved kimono. The well-trained monkeys are enacting a scene from the famous Kabuki play Sukeroku. From left to right, they represent the commoner hero Sukeroku; his sweetheart, the courtesan Agemaki; and his rival, the villainous samurai Hige no Ikyü.
DescriptionTriptych: 54.211 (left), 54.212 (center), 54.213 (right)
Signed
Toyokuni ga
豊国画
豊国画
Provenance1954, by exchange from Worcester Art Museum to the MFA. (Accession Date: April 8, 1954)