Raiko at the Demon Shuten-doji's Lair - Japanese Woodblock Print

<span style="font-weight: 400;">This captivating kabuki scene portrays a legendary tale, featuring the dreaded Shuten-doji, the Demon of Oeyama, notorious for kidnapping young beauties and imprisoning them in his lair on Mt. Oe near Kyoto. The brave warrior Minamoto no Yorimitsu, also known as Raiko, along with his men, embarks on a mission to confront and eliminate the demon. In this scene, Raiko and his retainers engage in entertaining the demon, strategically biding their time until Shuten-doji becomes inebriated for a tactical advantage. Shuten-doji is depicted reclining on a raised platform, holding an enormous red lacquer sake cup, while a beauty positioned below him stands ready to refill his cup from a long-handled sake warmer. Two horned demons stand guard on the right, one wielding a giant hatchet, while the other eyes the samurai menacingly. The artwork is exquisitely detailed, featuring delicate embossing in the white pants and a beautifully rendered wood grain impression in the softly shaded background. This triptych splendidly captures the essence of the classic tale, showcasing themes of bravery and heroism.</span> <br> <br><span style="font-weight: 400;">This artwork boasts exceptional color and detail, presented across three distinct panels. There is slight soiling at the edges, predominantly seen in the form of light marks. For a more in-depth examination of these nuances, please refer to the accompanying photos. Overall, the piece is considered to be in good condition.</span> <br> <br>These Woodblock Prints were created using the traditional <a href="https://www.cottage9.com/art-technique/art-of-japanese-woodblock-printing/">Japanese Woodblock Printing technique</a>, much like the way we use rubber stamps today. <br> <br>The text or image was first drawn onto washi (Japanese paper), then glued face-down onto a plank of wood, usually cherry. Wood was then cut away, based on the drawing outlines. A small wooden hard object called a baren was used to press or burnish the paper against the inked woodblock to apply the ink to the paper. Although this may have been done purely by hand at first, complex wooden mechanisms were soon invented and adopted to help hold the woodblock perfectly still and apply proper pressure in the printing process. This was especially helpful with the introduction of multiple colours that had to be applied with precision over previous ink layers. <br> <br>While, again, text was nearly always monochrome, as were images in books, the growth of the popularity of ukiyo-e brought with it demand for ever increasing numbers of colours and complexity of techniques. <br> <br>These prints are rendered using Nishiki-e ("brocade pictures") —a method of using multiple blocks for separate portions of the image, using a number of colours to achieve complex and detailed images. A separate block was carved to apply only the part of the image designated for a single colour.