Warriors Prints (402)
Warrior prints (musha-e) depict samurai, historical battles, legendary heroes, and martial subjects drawn from Japanese history, mythology, and literature. The genre flourished in the nineteenth century as artists responded to public appetite for dramatic narratives of valor, loyalty, and supernatural power, producing some of the most visually dynamic compositions in the woodblock tradition. Utagawa Kuniyoshi was the genre's supreme master, creating hundreds of warrior prints that combined vigorous draftsmanship with imaginative composition. His depictions of the 108 heroes of the Suikoden (Water Margin), historical battles, and supernatural encounters set standards of dramatic intensity that defined the genre. Kuniyoshi's warrior prints influenced not only subsequent printmakers but also the tattoo tradition (irezumi), which adopted many of his compositions. The warrior print tradition also served political purposes, particularly during periods when direct commentary on current events was censored. Artists used historical warrior subjects as coded references to contemporary political situations, a practice that required viewers to read the prints on multiple levels. The genre continued into the Meiji era, when prints documented the Satsuma Rebellion and Sino-Japanese War, before declining as photographic journalism replaced printmaking as the primary medium for depicting military subjects.
Artists Known for Warriors
Môri ?, from the series Mirror of Famous Generals of Great Japan (Dai nihon meishô kagami)
Woodblock print
Armoured Men (Yoroeru otokotachi)
1974
Color woodblock print; edition 8/50
Scene from Act 11
c.1935
Woodblock print
Endo Musha Morito
Woodblock print
Sukeroku
Woodblock print
Shibaraku
Woodblock print
Scene 1 from Act XI of The Revenge of the Loyal Retainers
Woodblock print
Shumitsu Kanja Yoshitaka
1867
Breaking News - Ako Roshi Vendetta Accomplished
Woodblock print
Kataoka Nizaemon XI as Kumagai
十一代目片岡仁左衛門の熊谷
1926
Color woodblock print
Kuruwa Sayaate
Circa 1954
Woodblock print
Yoshinobu
Woodblock print
Yanone II (ed. 4/20)
Woodblock print
Utagawa Kuniyoshi
Woodblock print
Kanjincho
1935
Painting
Hayano Kampei Tsuneyo
Woodblock print
19 Generals
Woodblock print
Hero: ??
Woodblock print
#40 Minori - Suzuki Saemon Shigeyuki aiming his Pistol from Ambush at Nobunaga
Woodblock print
Last Stand of Kusunoki Masatsura
Woodblock print
Kurahashi Zensuke Takeyuki
Woodblock print
Nagasaki Kangayu-Saemon
Woodblock print
Oribe Yasubei Taketsune
Woodblock print
Last stand of the Kusunoki Clan at Shijonawate in 1348
Woodblock print
Ichinotani
20th century
Woodblock print
Kashiwade no Hatebe
mid 1830s
Taiheiki Eiyu den
Woodblock print
Ensei
c. 1828–30
Woodblock print (surimono), ink and color on paper
Katsuta Shinemon Taketaka
Woodblock print
![Gen Shogo [Ruan Xiaowu]; Five-sheet print of Collecting Brine, no. 5 by Utagawa Kuniyoshi](https://1.api.artsmia.org/800/82218.jpg)
Gen Shogo [Ruan Xiaowu]; Five-sheet print of Collecting Brine, no. 5
c. 1828–30
Woodblock print (surimono), ink and color on paper
#52, Tanmeijiro Genshogo fighting General Ko underwater
Woodblock print
Inuka Kempachi Nobumichi Directing the Attempted Arrest of Inuzuka Shino Moritaka
Woodblock print
A competition among powerful magicians
Woodblock print
Taira no Harutake, Tanbe no Jiju
Woodblock print
Hayano Wasuke Tsunenari
Woodblock print
Kotenrai Ryoshin
Woodblock print
#14 Katsuenra Genshoshichi
Woodblock print
Seichu gishi den
Woodblock print
#18 Eda Genzo Hirotsuna
Woodblock print
Ishikawa Sosuke Sadatomo
Woodblock print
Captain Matsuzaki, Picture of Him Bravely Fighting at Anseong Ford
1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
General Ōyama…
August 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Katsuta Shinzaemon Taketaka 勝田新左衛門武尭 / Gishi shijushichi zu 義士四十七図
Woodblock print
Akechi Samanosuke
1868, 10th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Fujinami Yukarinosuke
1867
Komagine Hachibei
1868, 8th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Negoro no Komitsucha
1868, 9th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Picture of ‘White Stripe in the Waves’ Zhang Shun and ‘Black Whirlwind’ Li Kui Fighting in the Water
After February 1887
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Sugaya Kuemon
1868, 8th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Okuda Sadaemon Yukitaka, from
Woodblock print
Yamato Warriors: Okuda Sadaemon Yukitaka, from Chushingura
Woodblock print
Senba Saburobe Mitsutada 千馬三郎兵衛光忠 / Gishi shijushichi zu 義士四十七図
Woodblock print
Chushingura
Woodblock print
Infantrist Fujino Kunimatsu …
March 1895
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Hazama Jujiro Mitsuoki 間十次郎光興 / Gishi shijushichi zu 義士四十七図
Woodblock print
Kimura Okaemon Sadayuki 木村岡右衛門貞行 / Gishi shijushichi zu 義士四十七図
Woodblock print
Prologue
1860, 4th lunar month
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Inuzuka Shino and Inukai Genpachi
April 1873
Woodblock print (nishiki-e), ink and color on paper
Preparatory drawing of Sumoto Sakyō
1874
Preparatory drawing for a print, ink and color on paper
Preparatory drawing of Sakuma Dennai
circa 1868
Preparatory drawing for a print, ink and color on paper
Related Subjects
Frequently Asked Questions
Warrior prints (musha-e) depict samurai, historical battles, legendary heroes, and martial subjects drawn from Japanese history, mythology, and literature. The genre flourished in the nineteenth century as artists responded to public appetite for dramatic narratives of valor, loyalty, and supernatural power, producing some of the most visually dynamic compositions in the woodblock tradition.
Kobayashi Kiyochika, Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, and Ogata Gekko are among the artists most associated with warriors in our collection. Browse the full list of artists who explored this subject above.
Hanga currently catalogues 402 prints tagged with warriors, spanning ukiyo-e, shin-hanga, and sōsaku-hanga traditions where applicable.