Actors Sawamura Kunitarō II, Arashi Rikan II and Nakamura Matsue III

This 1829 Osaka kamigata-e [triptych](/glossary/triptych) by Gigadō Ashiyuki, held by the Victoria and Albert Museum (accession 28552:18, system O391502), depicts three Osaka actors of the late Bunsei period: Sawamura Kunitarō II, Arashi Rikan II, and Nakamura Matsue III. The triptych format places the three figures across three linked ōban sheets, each carrying its own inscription of actor name and role identity, in a multi-sheet composition typical of Osaka kamigata-e [yakusha-e](/glossary/yakusha-e) for complex ensemble productions. Sawamura Kunitarō II was a touring Edo actor whose Osaka appearances gave Ashiyuki the chance to document cross-city collaboration, Arashi Rikan II was the rising Osaka tachiyaku who had just succeeded to the stage name in 1828, and Nakamura Matsue III was a leading onnagata of the Osaka stage who would later succeed to the name Nakamura Tomijurō II. Together the three actors represented the productive cross-traffic between Edo and Osaka kabuki traditions that periodically punctuated the otherwise distinct regional stages. The print is preserved as a woodblock print on paper in the ōban [nishiki-e](/glossary/nishiki-e) format, mounted within an album in the V&A's collection (28552:18, system O391502). The album was acquired as part of the Anderson collection in 1886, and Ashiyuki's triptych within it is one of the better-documented multi-actor compositions of the late 1820s, capturing a specific 1829 Osaka production that brought together Edo and kamigata stars in a single ensemble piece.