Naval Battle between Japan and Qing off the Coast of Pungdo in Korea, Picture of the Great Victory of Our Forces
- Date:
- August 1894
- Medium:
- Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
- Format:
- Oban
- Dimensions:
- 36.8 × 74.3 cm
- Source:
- Minneapolis Institute of Art
Description
The opening naval battle of the First Sino-Japanese War — fought off the Korean coast near Pungdo (Asan Bay) in late July 1894 — is depicted in this August 1894 nishiki-e as a Japanese triumph. The Japanese cruiser Naniwa's sinking of the British-chartered Kowshing transport, which carried Qing reinforcements, was the combat that ignited the formal war, and Kiyochika's composition presents it as a righteous assertion of naval power. The seascape triptych format — waves, smoke, listing hulls — became his default grammar for naval war imagery.
More Prints by Kobayashi Kiyochika
More Landscapes Prints
Lake Kugushi in Wakasa Province (Wakasa Kugushiko), from the series Souvenirs of Travel I (Tabi miyage dai isshu)"
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Autumn Maple Leaves at Takao, from the album Eight Views of Kyoto (Kyôto hakkei)
Woodblock print
The Beach at Kaiganji in Sanuki Province (Sanuki Kaiganji no hama), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan II, Kansai Edition (Nihon fukei shu II Kansai hen)"
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
Tea Kettle, section of a sheet from the series "Mirror of Stone Rubbings of Views of the Provinces" (Kohon meihitsu ishizuri kagami)
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
Naval Battle between Japan and Qing off the Coast of Pungdo in Korea, Picture of the Great Victory of Our Forces was created by Kobayashi Kiyochika (小林清親) in August 1894.
Naval Battle between Japan and Qing off the Coast of Pungdo in Korea, Picture of the Great Victory of Our Forces depicts landscapes, seascapes, and warriors.
Naval Battle between Japan and Qing off the Coast of Pungdo in Korea, Picture of the Great Victory of Our Forces measures 36.8 × 74.3 cm (Oban format).