Triptych: Braving the Bitter Cold, Our Troops Set Up Camp at Yingkou (Eikô no genkan o okashite wagagun roei haru no zu), Meiji period, dated 1895

This 1895 triptych depicts Japanese troops establishing winter encampments at Yingkou (Eikō), a port city in Manchuria taken during the final phase of the First Sino-Japanese War. The full title—Eikō no genkan o okashite wagagun roei haru no zu—translates roughly as 'Our Troops Enduring the Bitter Cold of Yingkou Establish Their Spring Encampment.' The three-panel composition likely shows soldiers in winter campaign dress huddled around fires or constructing field fortifications against a snow-covered Manchurian plain. Kiyochika's interest in the quality of cold light and firelight against darkness finds natural expression in a subject that combines extreme winter conditions with the warmth of campfires. The title's emphasis on hardship endured aligns with the jingoistic framing common to Sino-Japanese War kassen-e, presenting the campaign as a test of Japanese national character.