approx. 25.5 x 35.5 cm, may have trimming, worm eaten holes, repair on back, wrinkles, stains, overall feeling of use and aging, please see photos for details.
“Kumonryū Shishin” is a woodblock print by Utagawa Kuniyoshi from the celebrated series One Hundred and Eight Heroes of the Popular Water Margin.
Shishin, known as “Nine-Dragoned Shi Jin,” received his nickname from the nine dragons tattooed across his body. A bold and highly skilled young warrior, he later becomes one of the 108 heroes who gather at Liangshan Marsh in the Chinese novel Water Margin.
Kuniyoshi emphasizes Shishin’s physical strength, dramatic movement, and elaborate dragon tattoos through a powerful, energetic composition. The series established Kuniyoshi’s reputation and helped inspire the popularity of Water Margin heroes, warrior prints, and tattoo imagery in nineteenth-century Japan.
Primary Material: Paper
Artist: 歌川国芳
Original/Reproduction: Antique Original
Technique: Woodblock print
Work name: 通俗水滸伝豪傑百八人之一個 九紋龍史進
Age: ca. 1827-29
Country of Origin: Japan
