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The Young Yoshitsune defeats Benkei at Gojo Bridge

A work made of color woodblock prints; oban triptych.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of color woodblock prints; oban triptych.

Date:

c. 1848

Artist:

Utagawa Kuniyoshi
Japanese, 1797–1861

About this artwork

Minamoto no Yoshitsune is one of the most famous samurai in Japanese history. A real warrior from the 12th century, Yoshitsune became a legendary figure that featured in folktales, such as one recounting how as a young man he defeated the giant Benkei at Gojō Bridge in Kyoto. This dramatic triptych features the eight goblins, or tengu, who aided Yoshitsune in this battle, including the tengu king, Sōjōbō, who was said to have taught Yoshitsune swords-manship. He can be seen at the top of the center panel, dressed as a Buddhist monk. The young warrior himself is perched on the edge of the bridge railing while the goblins subdue the giant.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Arts of Asia

Artist

Utagawa Kuniyoshi

Title

The Young Yoshitsune defeats Benkei at Gojo Bridge

Place

Japan (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1843–1853

Medium

Color woodblock prints; oban triptych

Credit Line

Purchased with funds provided by Mrs. Daniel Green

Reference Number

1975.477

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/49141/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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