31 Utagawa Kuniyoshi 1798 – 1861 Battle with the Giant Centipede from the Play Hatsumoto Yui Soga no Kyodai

publisher: Ningyoya Takichi

This triptych depicts actors performing the kabuki play Hatsumoto Yui Soga no Kyodai, staged at the Kawarazaki Theatre in 1849. From left: Ichikawa Kodanji IV as Shirai Gonpachi and Onoe Kikujirō II as Yaeume, daughter of Suketayu; center: Bandō Hikosaburō IV as Yoine no Nisuke and Onoe Kikujirō II as Sankatsu; right: Ichikawa Danjūrō VIII as Sasano Gonza and Bandō Hikosaburō IV as Akane Tabiya Chōkurō.

Kuniyoshi masterfully fuses dramatic stage tension with precise characterization, using diagonal composition and vivid color to heighten the emotional impact of the kabuki scene. The print exemplifies his late-period synthesis of theatrical realism and dynamic expression.

The play Hatsumoto Yui Soga no Kyodai combines the legend of the Soga brothers—avengers of their father’s death—with the heroic tales of Minamoto no Yorimitsu (Raikō) and his battles against supernatural monsters. The appearance of the giant centipede (mukade) symbolizes evil, treachery, and the moral trials faced by the heroes.

In the 1849 Kawarazaki production, the centipede was spectacularly staged using a massive paper-and-bamboo mechanism animated across the stage, creating one of the most memorable theatrical effects of the Edo period—a powerful blend of fantasy, heroism, and kabuki visual spectacle.