Title: Nihon Banzai Hyakusen Hyakusho, Nichirosensō (Long Live Japan: One Hundred Victories, One Hundred Laughs. Russo-Japanese War), Circa 1904-1905; With; Rokoku Seibatsu Senshō Shōwa. An Extraordinarily Rare Collection of 87 Color Woodblock Print Caricatures on the Russo-Japanese War.
Author: Kobayashi Kiyochika; Utagawa Kokunimasa V or Baido Hosai
Publisher: Not Specified; Maki Kinnosuke
Condition: Very Good
An Early Meiji Period, early 20th century album of woodblock color prints, or Nishiki-e, comprising of a near complete suite of 77 of 84 prints from the series Nihon Banzai Hyakusen Hyakusho, Nichirosensō, or Long Live Japan: One Hundred Victories, One Hundred Laughs, Russo-Japanese War.
A satirical twist on the term “One Hundred Battles, One Hundred Victories”, the series comprised of various caricatures produced at the onset of the Russo-Japanese War in 1904 to 1905, produced by Kobayashi Kiyochika, with political events and scenes turn into comical moments. From the Battle of Port Arthur turned into a Japanese Octopus destroying Russian fleet ships, to a soldier embodying the spirit of Raijin and terrifying Russian soldiers, a massive Japanese hand reaching down to crush the Russian enemy and more, there are dozens of fantastical illustrations, and displaying a level of heightened nationalistic pride, that the Japanese would not falter against Russia.
The complete Nihon Banzai Hyakusen Hyakusho has of 77 of 84 woodblock color prints, or Nishiki-e, which are as followed:
Kyōhei no sen nin-ryoku (The fighting power of a strong army), Kairiku sensō-shō-waza (Winning techniques for land and naval warfare), Nigawa-kan tai no ichi ami (The Incheon ship catches a sea bream), Naki itaware (Crying and struggling), Tako no tara hi (The legs of a red-spotted fish), Uma e kufū (A burying device), Maga Ro-tai Hōdai (The circumlocution battery), Tama-jō no shi-ku shiri (The bitter end of a king's death), Kage Benkei (Shadow Benkei), Hida hito-dama (A flying man, a king), Ku Ro kuma taiji (Defeating a bitter bear), Táo Ro (Escape, circumlocution), sǎo Ha Uchi Hokori Ha Soto (Sweeping inside, dust outside), Tegowai heishi (A formidable soldier), Tekihei no mu shubi (The enemy soldiers' lack of defense), Ryōkoku no oozumou (Sumo wrestling between the two countries), Shin chōko (The new fishing fox), Ro-to no chidjimi-hyō (A miniature version of the Russian capital), Ryaoton o kanben (Please pardon Liaodong), Sho shiro o fumitsubu su (Crushing castles), Hida meian (A flying, confusing plan), Tehidoi tsubushi katachi (A cruel crushing formation), Jōtō no shi Ro-mono (A fine example of death), Tokuriji no da koware (The destruction of Tori-ji Temple), wēi Myō Na Hata Ra Ki (A strange flag-like atmosphere), Roshia no gōgai-uri (A Russian extra newspaper), Ro shō ka kōshō ka (A Russian general or a surrendering general), Sangokken (The Three Kingdoms Martial Arts), Maga Ro Kan (A circumlocution, circumlocution ship), Bakuro-sei no yasu gunkan (A cheap warship made of exposed material), Wari no mube i Katsunori (A cost-effective method of victory), Hofu tsuyu ki musha (A warrior who kills with a strong charcoal slaughter), Isha ni mo komatsuta (Even the doctor was troubled), Suirai-tei no dai tō (A big hit with a torpedo boat), Koshaku Tsu wēi Hei (A petulant and dangerous soldier), Ro-kan no heikō (The Russian ship's stunned silence), Hai-kan no shi-sue (The demise of a defeated ship), Ro-hei no yowa mu-shi (The weak and unmanned Russian soldiers), Kiken tsunawatari (A dangerous tightrope walk), Gu maga no oto mo denpō (The sound of foolish detours is a telegram), nì Gō No Chisō (A feast for the addicts), Ura shio no dai koma zatsu (The great turmoil of Urashio), Nan demo heiki (A weapon despite the difficulties), Ippon'ashi no oimono (A one-legged burden), Chiya n to Ochi jō (A proper fallen lady), Matenrei no jaku Kasane (A weak attack from Matentei), Ro shō no shingun (The Russian general's trembling army), Yamato-dama no gochisō (A feast for the Yamato jewels), Sen Shō wán Rō Mono (A playful display of victory), tǔ Tan No Kurushi Mi (The agony of swearing), Dzudon shō (A thud-thumping victory), Inochi no shiroi mono (The white stuff of life), Nichiro no tachi gō (A duel between Japan and Russia), Daihyō fu no ji retsu-komi (A large army surrenders, but its own inferiority is taken), Kyū-ren jō no hei ki (The military spirit of the nine-armed ladies), Roshia ichi ruten-te kata Mai (Russia's first-rate turning dance), Yowāru to awateru (Yowar and Awater), Dai fu ni dai maki (A heavy defeat, but a heavy firewood), Ro-hei no dō shi-da (A deadly attack by Russian soldiers), wēi Fujin No Taibyō (The dangerous lady's serious illness), Ro shō no kadode (The Russian general's journey), Omoshiroi ku otto (A funny and bitter man), Tekikan no dai Emi koto (A laughing matter from an enemy ship), Nipponhei no raimei (A Japanese soldier's thunderous reputation), Dai ha no shi-jutsu (Oba's death technique), San shi no men kai (The mysterious three-faced death mask), O ka Shina táo Fu (China's escape), wēi Tai Na Ō Hora (A dangerous big bluff), Furanu sawagi (A commotion without rain), Ro-hei no tōhenboku (A fallen tree of a Russian soldier), Kurushī ami tanomi (Relying on a net in hard times), Haiboku no o chūshin (Report of defeat), Ōotoko no hei tsuppari (A big man's soldier charges forward), Ō chī Kegare No Oni (A demon of great filth), Mecha fu no bōrei (A ghost of depravity), Ro-kan no kakubee (Kakubei of the Russian ship).
The following prints are lacking: Hōten no Chiyoko mi-zei (The small-scale forces of Fengtian), Torare hōdai (A captured battery), Kaizoku-sen no hametsu (The destruction of a pirate ship), Dō se-shō tsubushi (Burning down the back of the body), Ryojun no tama nashi (No jewels in Port Arthur), Roshia no senji kan'non (The Kannon of Russia in wartime), Kurushī toki no kani tanomi (Relying on a crab in hard times), Daruma daihi (Bodhidharma's great compassion),
Also added is Utagawa Kokunimasa V’s Rokoku Seibatsu Senshō Shōwa, or Selected Laughs about the Russian Army, another woodblock color print series about the Russo-Japanese War, produced in 1904.
The Rokoku Seibatsu Senshō Shōwa is complete with all ten prints by Kokunimasa, being as followed:
A caricature of the Russian army showing a Russian officer with troops in formation
Debris from a Russian battleship falling to the bottom of the sea where it is being salvaged by fish wearing kimonos
A human figure with Russian battleship for a head being operated on by Japanese surgeons
Roshia make tabako no kōfuku
A Russian businessman talking to two workmen attempting to repair a damaged Russian battleship
A Russian doctor and nurse attending to a man with a Russian battleship for a head lying in bed
A Russian officer talking to a Chinese or Korean bookseller
A Russian railroad troop transport and soldiers crashing through ice
Sailors removing munitions from warship
Toridori no uwasa
Auction results are scarce for substantial selections of the Nichirosensō Series, and no album this complete has ever come up for sale at any Western Sale.
All the prints have been laid down and bound (out of standard order) into a large album, with brocade decorated covers, though they have been heavily worn down.
One brocade decorated album in orihon format (35.9 x 23.9 cm), 87 woodblock color prints (Nishiki-e)
This album is in very good shape, with some rubbing and wear to the brocade covers. There is minor, scattered soiling and old staining throughout, with only a few prints slightly more stained. A few of the prints are starting to loosen slightly at the corners where they were bound in, and there are corner creases.