Eastern Art Online, Yousef Jameel Centre for Islamic and Asian Art

Ashmolean − Eastern Art Online, Yousef Jameel Centre for Islamic and Asian Art

Kuniyoshi’s Heroes of China and Japan

A catalogue of the Ashmolean’s collection of warriors by Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798-1861) by Oliver Impey and Mitsuko Watanabe (published Oxford, 2003).

Kuniyoshi’s Heroes of China and Japan by Oliver Impey and Mitsuko Watanabe

Publications online: 20 objects

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Daitō Kanshō (Guang Sheng)

  • Literature notes

    Suikoden chapter 62

    Daitō Kanshō was born in Hotō-gun, the grandson of Juteikō (Shouting hou), and was a descendant of the great general, Kan-u Unchō (Guanyu Yunchang), during the time of the Three Kingdoms; he is thought to have greatly resembled him. He was a municipal guard and always used a glaive called a 'seiryūtō', or ‘green dragon’ the origin of his nickname, Daitō (big spear). While he was young, he became well versed in martial arts and weaponry and his style of fighting was similar to that of Kan-u.

    This print shows the battle of Tōshōfu (Dongchang fu) where Kanshō is blocking the stones that are being thrown by Botsu-usen Chōsei (Zhang Qing), using the butt of his enormous glaive to parry them. He was considered particularly brave to fight against Chōsei who was famous for being able to hit his target with a stone ten times out of ten. This print of Kanshō forms a diptych with a print of Chōsei in Kuniyoshi's Suikoden, lacking in the collection.
  • Details

    Series
    One of the 108 Heroes of the Popular Water Margin
    Associated place
    AsiaJapanHonshūKantōTōkyō prefecture Tōkyō (place of creation)
    AsiaJapanHonshūKantōTōkyō prefecture Tōkyō (place of publication)
    Date
    1827 - 1830
    Artist/maker
    Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797 - 1861) (designer)
    Associated people
    Kagaya Kichibei (active c. 1804 - 1880) (publisher)
    Material and technique
    woodblock
    Dimensions
    mount 55.4 x 40.5 cm (height x width)
    print 38.5 x 26.2 cm (height x width)
    Material index
    Technique index
    Object type index
    No. of items
    1
    Credit line
    Presented by George Grigs, Miss Elizabeth Grigs, and Miss Susan Messer, in memory of Derick Grigs, 1971.
    Accession no.
    EA1971.98
  • Further reading

Location

    • currently in research collection

Objects are sometimes moved to a different location. Our object location data is usually updated on a monthly basis. Contact the Jameel Study Centre if you are planning to visit the museum to see a particular object on display, or would like to arrange an appointment to see an object in our reserve collections.

 

Publications online

  • Kuniyoshi’s Heroes of China and Japan by Oliver Impey and Mitsuko Watanabe

    Kuniyoshi’s Heroes of China and Japan

    Suikoden chapter 62

    Daitō Kanshō was born in Hotō-gun, the grandson of Juteikō (Shouting hou), and was a descendant of the great general, Kan-u Unchō (Guanyu Yunchang), during the time of the Three Kingdoms; he is thought to have greatly resembled him. He was a municipal guard and always used a glaive called a 'seiryūtō', or ‘green dragon’ the origin of his nickname, Daitō (big spear). While he was young, he became well versed in martial arts and weaponry and his style of fighting was similar to that of Kan-u.

    This print shows the battle of Tōshōfu (Dongchang fu) where Kanshō is blocking the stones that are being thrown by Botsu-usen Chōsei (Zhang Qing), using the butt of his enormous glaive to parry them. He was considered particularly brave to fight against Chōsei who was famous for being able to hit his target with a stone ten times out of ten. This print of Kanshō forms a diptych with a print of Chōsei in Kuniyoshi's Suikoden, lacking in the collection.
Notice

Object information may not accurately reflect the actual contents of the original publication, since our online objects contain current information held in our collections database. Click on 'buy this publication' to purchase printed versions of our online publications, where available, or contact the Jameel Study Centre to arrange access to books on our collections that are now out of print.

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