Tsukiyoka YOSHITOSHI.1839-1892Scene from the Kabuki play.1863Polychrome woodblock. 241x360 mm, trimmed within margin. On the left the signature in the cartouche, under the signature the seal of the censor Aratame. Probable sheet of a triptych or a diptych. Slight loss in the left margin which affects a small part of the cartouche with the signature, otherwise good condition.

Very beautiful colored print depicting two actors in a scene of Kabuki teather. The standing man, elderly and with long white hair is probably a ghost that appearing at the young seated actor. The censor seal Aratame bears the date 1863 “Pig Year 7th Mo” (改亥七). Tsukioka Yoshitoshi, is widely recognized as the last great master of the ukiyo-e genre of woodblock printing and painting. He is also regarded as one of the form's greatest innovators. His career spanned two eras – the last years of Edo period Japan, and the first years of modern Japan following the Meiji Restoration.