Soga Jūrō Sukenari and Soga Gorō Tokimune

Date:: 1872–73
Medium:: Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Format:: Oban
Dimensions:: 34.8 × 23 cm
Source:: Minneapolis Institute of Art

Typical Price

Scarce or exceptional Yoshitoshi composition in fine condition: $1,500–$8,000
Good condition print: $400–$1,500
Later impression or common subject: $200–$600

Description

Soga Jūrō Sukenari and Soga Gorō Tokimune were the brothers at the center of one of Japan's most celebrated revenge stories, who in 1193 killed the man responsible for their father's murder after an eighteen-year wait. The Soga brothers' vendetta became a cornerstone of popular Japanese narrative culture, with annual theatrical celebrations and countless prints commemorating their filial devotion and martial resolve. Yoshitoshi's 1872–73 double portrait presents the brothers in heroic warrior guise, their shared purpose evident in the compositional pairing.

More Prints by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

Shunkan Watching Enviously from Kikai Island as Yasuyori Returns to the Capitol after Being Unexpectedly Pardoned (Shunkan sozu Kikaigashima ni oite tamatama Yasuyori no shamen senbo kito no zu)

Looking as if She Wants to Go for a Walk: The Fashion of a Married Woman of the Meiji Era (Yūho ga shitasō, Meiji nenkan saikun no fūzoku), from the series Thirty-two Appearances of Fashion (Fūzoku sanjūni sō)

Slovenly (Shidaranasaso), from the series "Thirty-two Aspects of Women (Fuzoku sanjuniso)"

1888

Color woodblock print; oban

Four PM, from the series "Twenty-Four Hours in Shinbashi and Yanagibashi"

n.d.

Color woodblock print

More Figures Prints

Shamyris, Shôwa period, dated 1965?

Woodblock print

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

Woodblock print

Midas, Shôwa period, dated 1965?

Woodblock print

Gundari Myôô, Shôwa period, dated 1962

Woodblock print

Featured in Collections

Curated cross-cuts that include this print.

Japanese Ghost and Yōkai Prints

Frequently Asked Questions

Soga Jūrō Sukenari and Soga Gorō Tokimune was created by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (月岡芳年) in 1872–73.

Soga Jūrō Sukenari and Soga Gorō Tokimune depicts figures, warriors, and portraits.

Soga Jūrō Sukenari and Soga Gorō Tokimune measures 34.8 × 23 cm (Oban format).