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Hanga

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

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Utagawa Kuniyoshi
Daikoku and Fukurokuju sumo wrestling

Daikoku and Fukurokuju sumo wrestling

by Utagawa Kuniyoshi

Ukiyo-e

Sumo

Medium:: Woodblock print
Format:: Oban
Source:: Art of Japan

Typical Price

Uncommon subject or exceptional impression: $2,000–$8,000
Good condition standard print: $500–$2,000
Later impression or common subject: $200–$600

Description

The seven Lucky Gods (Shichifukujin) occasionally appear in playful competitive scenarios in Japanese popular imagery, and this print imagines Daikoku and Fukurokuju — the god of wealth and the god of longevity — locked in a sumo match. The pairing of two rotund, jolly deities in a wrestling bout generates inherent comic absurdity, and Kuniyoshi treats the subject with the humorous affection he brought to all his comic prints. The sumo ring context grounds the divine figures in the most popular sporting spectacle of Edo culture.