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Utagawa Toyokuni I

A Chushingura Parody

c. 1787
Color woodblock print; hashira-e (pillar print)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

In this version of the parody based on Act VII, a young man stands on the veranda reading a long love letter. A young woman, seated on the ground outside a fence, also reads the letter and is apparently greatly amused by its contents. Another young woman seated on a balcony looks down on the scene. It is thought that the artist designed this print at the age of eighteen.

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