Jayanagi

Catalog note / 解説

From a series on Eighteen Master Plays of the Ichikazwa Family This print is based upon Jayanagi (The Snake Willow). Beautiful women in Japan were often compared to willows, though it was believed that jealousy could transform a woman into a snake or demon. This connection, along with an old tale that describes a giant snake captured by the Buddhist priest Kukai transforming itself into a willow tree, seems to be the basis for the title. The dramatic action has a clown figure, Tamba no Suketaro, possessed by the jealous Kiyohime, who vents all of her frustration and rage through him. Items 6249-6255 could be nicely grouped.