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A free platform for exploring Japanese woodblock prints from the shin-hanga, sosaku-hanga, and ukiyo-e traditions.

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Kawanabe Kyosai
An Unfortunate Tale, II

An Unfortunate Tale, II by Kawanabe Kyosai — Japanese Print, before 1870

An Unfortunate Tale, II

by Kawanabe Kyosai

Meiji/Taishō Prints

Figures Daily Life

Date:: before 1870
Medium:: Print
Format:: Oban
Source:: Victoria and Albert Museum

Typical Price

Uncommon or exceptional Kyosai subject in fine condition: $1,000–$5,000
Good condition standard woodblock print: $300–$1,500
Common or lesser subject: $100–$500

Description

An early work with a darkly comic title suggesting a tale gone wrong, produced before 1870 when Kyosai was still refining the combination of dark humor and social commentary that would define his mature voice. The print belongs to a tradition of "unfortunate tale" imagery — stories of mishap, bad luck, and comic disaster that appealed to ordinary readers seeking humor that acknowledged life's unpredictability. Kyosai's version has an edge that elevates it above mere entertainment into something closer to social satire.

More Prints by Kawanabe Kyosai

from the series One Hundred Pictures by Kyôsai (Kyôsai hyakuzu) by Kawanabe Kyosai

from the series One Hundred Pictures by Kyôsai (Kyôsai hyakuzu)

Woodblock print

Old Picture of the Rashômon Gate (Rashômon no ko zu), from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho tsuzuki by Kawanabe Kyosai

Old Picture of the Rashômon Gate (Rashômon no ko zu), from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho tsuzuki

Woodblock print

Tsukishimadera Temple in Hyôgo (Hyôgo Tsukishimadera), from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi by Kawanabe Kyosai

Tsukishimadera Temple in Hyôgo (Hyôgo Tsukishimadera), from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi

Woodblock print

from the series One Hundred Pictures by Kyôsai (Kyôsai hyakuzu) by Kawanabe Kyosai

from the series One Hundred Pictures by Kyôsai (Kyôsai hyakuzu)

Woodblock print

More Figures Prints

Shamyris, Shôwa period, dated 1965? by Hideo Hagiwara

Shamyris, Shôwa period, dated 1965?

Woodblock print

Celebrating the Good Harvest: Felicitations for a Thousand Ages (Nôhônen, Chiyo no kotobuki) by Kawanabe Kyosai

Celebrating the Good Harvest: Felicitations for a Thousand Ages (Nôhônen, Chiyo no kotobuki)

Woodblock print

Midas, Shôwa period, dated 1965? by Hideo Hagiwara

Midas, Shôwa period, dated 1965?

Woodblock print

Gundari Myôô, Shôwa period, dated 1962 by Kihei Sasajima

Gundari Myôô, Shôwa period, dated 1962

Woodblock print

Frequently Asked Questions

An Unfortunate Tale, II was created by Kawanabe Kyosai (河鍋暁斎) in before 1870.

An Unfortunate Tale, II depicts figures and daily life.