Female Samurai Yamahime Akitsu and Japanese Legend in Muromachi Genji Illustrated by Kunisada II, 1866

Ryutei Senka Muromachi Genji

Book

Muromachi Genji illustrated book set, 1866, adapting the prestige of Genji romance into late Edo serial fiction shaped by vendetta, disguise, domestic intrigue, theatrical confrontation, and supernatural violence. The work belongs to the gōkan market that transformed classical and medieval literary names into illustrated popular narratives for urban readers, here using “Genji” as a frame for Muromachi period adventure rather than a direct retelling of Murasaki Shikibu’s court romance. Its heroine episodes, especially the sword bearing Yamahime Akitsu and the black fox sequence, give the series a martial and supernatural register far removed from classical Genji reception.

Ryūtei Senka. Muromachi Genji. Japan, 1866. Illustrated by Utagawa Kunisada II. Six small sewn books joined into one unit, each approximately 4.5 x 7 inches. Woodblock printed text and illustrations throughout, including the cover title slip reading “室町源氏,” actor patterned interiors, domestic scenes, rain travel scenes, confrontation scenes, a demon or fox spirit apparition, and a full page design of the female warrior Yamahime Akitsu entering with an exceptionally long sword before a seated man. The visible title slip identifies later numbered parts, and the illustrated openings show the series moving between romance, household intrigue, travel, pursuit, supernatural danger, and armed encounter.

The series comes from the final years of the Tokugawa shogunate, when gōkan fiction combined serialized prose, kabuki actor likenesses, warrior tales, and dense ukiyo e illustration. Kunisada II’s illustrate the historical language through aristocratic interiors, theatrical gesture, and violent spirit encounters. Akitsu’s long sword scene is a secondary centerpiece within that larger structure, casting the heroine as an active fighter inside a Genji derived adventure cycle of disguise, pursuit, revenge, and supernatural trial. Original blue wrappers show some wear; all six books attached together; scattered worm holes, toning, edge wear, and rubbing, with prints generally clean. Overall good condition. A late Edo illustrated Genji transformation in which serial fiction turns courtly inheritance into digestible adventure, highlighting the importance and equal nature of female warriors in Japanese legend.

Item #23637

Price: $2,200.00