Three sons of the Tatabe, from the Shoku Nihongi, by Yashima Gakutei

An image of Three sons of the Tatabe, from the Shoku Nihongi. Gakutei, Yashima (Japanese, 1786(?)-1868). Surimono. Colour print from woodblocks, with metallic pigment, circa 1820-circa 1823. Poetry by Harunoya Naritake. Notes: From the series Honchoren honcho nijushiko (Twenty-four Japanese examples of filial piety for the Honcho group). Gakutei was the main print-designer associated with the Honcho poetry group around 1820. The name derives from that of a district in Edo, but it was also a literary word for ‘Japan’ and may therefore have contributed to the choice of theme for the series. A canonical group of twenty-four examples of the Confucian concept of filial devotion was established in China at a relatively early date. These had been the subject of Japanese woodblock prints since the beginning of the eighteenth century, when Japanese equivalents of the twenty-four first appeared. On the prints, the name of the exemplar is followed by the literary or historical work in which their story was told. The Shoku Nihongi (Records of Japan Continued) was one of the Rikkokushi (Six National Histories), covering the reign of Mommu (697-707) and stopping in 791.

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Three sons of the Tatabe, from the Shoku Nihongi. Gakutei, Yashima (Japanese, 1786(?)-1868). Surimono. Colour print from woodblocks, with metallic pigment, circa 1820-circa 1823. Poetry by Harunoya Naritake. Notes: From the series Honchoren honcho nijushiko (Twenty-four Japanese examples of filial piety for the Honcho group). Gakutei was the main print-designer associated with the Honcho poetry group around 1820. The name derives from that of a district in Edo, but it was also a literary word for ‘Japan’ and may therefore have contributed to the choice of theme for the series. A canonical group of twenty-four examples of the Confucian concept of filial devotion was established in China at a relatively early date. These had been the subject of Japanese woodblock prints since the beginning of the eighteenth century, when Japanese equivalents of the twenty-four first appeared. On the prints, the name of the exemplar is followed by the literary or historical work in which their story was told. The Shoku Nihongi (Records of Japan Continued) was one of the Rikkokushi (Six National Histories), covering the reign of Mommu (697-707) and stopping in 791.

Image data

Accession Number: P.319-1937
Photograph copyright © The Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.
Aperture: f/20.0
Focal length: 120
Camera: Hasselblad H4D-31
Photographer name: Sam Cole
Image height: 1025 pixels
Image width: 920 pixels
Processed with: Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 5.0 (Windows)
Filesize: 0.96MB
Exposure time: 1/250
ISO Speed: 100
Fnumber: 20/1
Captured: 2017:09:04 09:40:47

Key words

19th Century architectural architecture blind embossing children colour printing costume devotion devotional Edo Period embossed embossing father father and son filial Fitz_PDP Gakutei Japan Japanese male metallic pigment parents piety pigment pious poem poetry poets print sons surimono ukiyo-e woman women woodblock woodcut Yashima Gakutei

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            "Three sons of the Tatabe, from the Shoku Nihongi, by Yashima Gakutei"
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            |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2026-01-17 20:31:53|publisher=The
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