RECEIVED BACK INTO MOON PALACE, BAMBOO CUTTER from the collection of Jerome Lion

RECEIVED BACK INTO MOON PALACE, BAMBOO CUTTER, 1888

Color woodblock print on paper

Vertical oban 36 x 24 cm

Signature: Signed Yoshitoshi with seal

Gekkyu no Mukae, Taketori (Received back into Moon Palace, Bamboo Cutter), from the series Tsuki no hyakushi (One Hundred Aspects of the Moon).
Princess Kaguya returning to the palace of the moon. Her adoptive father, the bamboo cutter, has fallen to his knees as he begs her not to go, face upturned and arms raised in his plea. As Kaguyahime rises on a cloud, flanked by heavenly attendants, her face reveals her sorrow as she leaves her earthly family.
In this famous fairytale, an old bamboo cutter discovers a tiny baby girl inside of a hollow bamboo stem. He takes her home to his wife, where the child grows into a beautiful young woman in a miraculously short time. Her name is Kaguyahime, “Shining Princess.” Many suitors attempt to court her, but she gives each an impossible task and each is defeated. When the news of her beauty reaches the emperor, he asks for her hand in marriage. Finally, Kaguyahime reveals that she came from the moon to answer the old couple's desire for a child, but that she must now leave them and return to her home.

This print is part of Yoshitoshi's famous series One Hundred Aspects of the Moon, which consists of one hundred prints with the moon as a unifying motif and depicts scenes from traditional Chinese and Japanese history and lore. Prints from the series were released individually or in groups every few months, with the final image completed shortly before Yoshitoshi's death. The series proved tremendously popular, with patrons lining up to purchase the new releases as soon as they became available. Today, One Hundred Aspects of the Moon remains Yoshitoshi's most well-known work.

Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-1892) was one of the leading woodblock print artists during the Meiji era (1868-1912) and one of the last to work in the traditional ukiyo-e manner. Born in Edo (today's Tokyo), he showed a strong interest in classical Japanese literature and history. When he was 11, he became a student at Kuniyoshi Utagawa's studio. Under his teacher's guidance, he showed exquisite draftsmanship skills and learned how to draw from life, something not necessarily part of the training schools of painting and illustration in Japan.

Museum comparison:
A closely related print is in the Art Gallery of New South Wales, accession number 258.2012.60

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From Jerome Lion

AYAOKA YUSHIN (有真綾岡)

TO UPDATE !!! Tōshōgu Omitōshi, 東照宮御見透し; A view of the Tōshōgu shrine- from "Nice views of Nikko" serie - Nikkō Shōkei, c. 1892

Color woodblock print on paper

Ōban (大判) 36,8 cm x 25,3cm (14,48 x 9,96 inches)
AYAOKA YUSHIN (有真綾岡)

TO UPDATE !!! Tōshōgu Omitōshi, 東照宮御見透し; A view of the Tōshōgu shrine- from "Nice views of Nikko" serie - Nikkō Shōkei, c. 1892

Color woodblock print on paper

Ōban (大判) 36,8 cm x 25,3cm (14,48 x 9,96 inches)
AYAOKA YUSHIN (有真綾岡)

TO UPDATE !!! Tōshōgu Omitōshi, 東照宮御見透し; A view of the Tōshōgu shrine- from "Nice views of Nikko" serie - Nikkō Shōkei, c. 1892

Color woodblock print on paper

Ōban (大判) 36,8 cm x 25,3cm (14,48 x 9,96 inches)
AYAOKA YUSHIN (有真綾岡)

Sōrintō (双輪塔) - from "Nice views of Nikko" serie - Nikkō Shōkei, c. 1892

Color woodblock print on paper

Ōban (大判) 36,8 cm x 25,3cm (14,48 x 9,96 inches)
Ogata Gekko

Ferry Boat for Samurai, Farmers, Artisans, and Merchants, 1892

Color woodblock print on paper

Oban
Ogata Gekko

100 Fuji, Night Attack of Soga, c. 1892

Color woodblock print on paper

Oban
TSUKIOKA YOSHITOSHI

SESON TEMPLE MOON, CAPTAIN YOSHITAKA, 1888

Color woodblock print on paper

Vertical Oban 36.2 x 24.8 cm
Ogata Gekko

Kyubi no Kitsune, Nine Tailed Fox, 1887

Color woodblock print on paper

Oban

View All Artworks

About the artist

TSUKIOKA YOSHITOSHI

1839–1892

Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839–1892)
A master of late ukiyo-e and one of the most innovative artists of the Meiji era, Yoshitoshi is celebrated for his dramatic compositions, psychological depth, and technical refinement. A pupil of Utagawa Kuniyoshi, he began his career in the 1850s and worked through Japan’s turbulent transition from Edo to Meiji. His prints explore themes of heroism, beauty, folklore, and violence, blending traditional woodblock aesthetics with a modern sensibility. Major series include One Hundred Aspects of the Moon (Tsuki hyakushi, 1885–1892), New Forms of Thirty-six Ghosts (Shinkei Sanjūrokkaisen, 1889–1892), and Twenty-eight Famous Murders with Verse (Eimei nijūhasshūku, 1866–1869). Though he faced hardship and mental illness later in life, Yoshitoshi’s work marked the final flowering of ukiyo-e and influenced generations of modern Japanese artists.

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Additional Details

Additional Artworks

TO UPDATE !!! Tōshōgu Omitōshi, 東照宮御見透し; A view of the Tōshōgu shrine- from "Nice views of Nikko" serie - Nikkō Shōkei, c. 1892

TO UPDATE !!! Tōshōgu Omitōshi, 東照宮御見透し; A view of the Tōshōgu shrine- from "Nice views of Nikko" serie - Nikkō Shōkei, c. 1892

TO UPDATE !!! Tōshōgu Omitōshi, 東照宮御見透し; A view of the Tōshōgu shrine- from "Nice views of Nikko" serie - Nikkō Shōkei, c. 1892

Sōrintō (双輪塔) - from "Nice views of Nikko" serie - Nikkō Shōkei, c. 1892

Ferry Boat for Samurai, Farmers, Artisans, and Merchants, 1892

100 Fuji, Night Attack of Soga, c. 1892

SESON TEMPLE MOON, CAPTAIN YOSHITAKA, 1888

Kyubi no Kitsune, Nine Tailed Fox, 1887

About the artist

TSUKIOKA YOSHITOSHI