Title: Ōeyama Emaki (Oeyama Picture Scroll), Dated 1634. A Celebratory Parade Scene of the Victorious Minamoto no Raikō Returning with the Oni King’s Head. Numerous Ink Drawings
Author: Attributed to Ikeya Genzaemon
Condition: Very Good
An Early Edo Period, 17th century emakimono handscroll, containing the final scene from the Ōeyama Emaki, or the Oeyama Picture Scroll, being the Tale of Shuten Doji. Though possibly older, the oldest surviving text of the legend is recorded in the 14th century Ōeyama Ekotoba, which was then widely reprinted and reproduced over the centuries.
The tale follows an account of how the legendary hero Minamoto no Raikō, or Yorimitsu, slew Shuten Doji, the demon king of Japan, and although decapitated, the demon's detached head still took a bite at the hero, who avoided death by wearing multiple helmets stacked on his head. This scene depicts no Raiko and his retinue, having returned victorious with the dismembered parts of the slain Oni King.
This example is a rough copy of one of the earlier Kano School examples, being signed and attributed to Ikeya Genzaemon.
A samurai from the early Edo period, Genzaemon has been recorded as a magistrate on the memorial tower of Sugen-in Temple, erected in Kan'ei 4 (1627) by Shogun Tokugawa Tadanaga to commemorate his mother, Oe no Kata. He may have been a relative of Ikeya Seiemon, a local lord who abandoned the Takeda clan, helped Tokugawa Ieyasu cross the Oi River, and later served Tokugawa Tadanaga as a magistrate.
The drawings have been laid down and bound in a scroll format for preservation, with a green cover, and there are small jikusaki (knobs) made of lacquered wood.
One emakimono (picture scroll) on washi paper, 34.2 x 311 cm. The knobs are not included as part of the measurement.
This handscroll is in very good shape, with minor rubbing and wear to the paper cover. There are a few worm tracks to the center, and some minor wear and creasing throughout.