「源頼光大江山入之図」 / ARC浮世絵ポータルデータベース

Minamoto no Yorimitsu

Minamoto no Yorimitsu (Raikō) was a military commander of the mid-Heian period. He was born in 948 (Tenryaku 2) and died at the age of 74.

The Yorimitsu legend, based on the tales of heroism of Yorimitsu and the warriors under his command, has been featured in many works with Yorimitsu as the main character. Also, stories based on such anecdotes have been created. They have also been featured in performing arts such as noh, joruri, and kabuki, and have become well known to many people.

Yorimitsu's era was one in which the samurai class was gradually beginning to rise. Yorimitsu's tales of heroism are not battles for power in the clan like the Genpei War, but battles against enemies from other worlds to protect the powerful central sovereignty. The exploits of the warriors led by Yorimitsu, who boldly fought against things from other worlds, or things unknown to the people, must have been seen as heroic in the eyes of the people of that time.

Extermination of the Mt. Oh-e demons

A series of works depicting people and anecdotes related to Shuten-dōji, a mythical oni (demon) leader of Japan. It is unknown if these are six-piece sets.

The above are the first three of a set of six nishiki-e prints created by Hasegawa Konobu in 1887 (Meiji 20). These nishiki-e depict the whole narrative of Yorimitsu at the time.　The title of the work is “Extermination of the Mt. Oh-e demons," and it is clear that this is the climax of Yorimitsu's legend.

Extermination of Tsuchigumo (spider-limbed monster)

In the Kojiki (Japanese mythology), Nihonshoki (Chronicles of Japan), and Hitachinokuni Fudoki (Regional geography of Hitachinokuni), there are descriptions of indigenous people who were hostile to the Yamato Imperial Court and were called "Tsuchigumo". However, Tsuchigumo, as it is commonly known, is a creature that appears in Yorimitsu's narratives as an otherworldly being. The Tsuchigumo became known through the noh play "Tsuchigumo" and "Zen Taiheiki (a popular warrior tale) in the Edo period" based on the story of the origin of the famous sword Kumokiri in the chapter named "Tsurugi" (sword) of Heike Monogatari (Tale of the Heike).

The Legend of Shuten Doji

The legend of Shuten-doji is said to have originated in the Nanbokucho period. The oldest extant work about the legend of Shuten-doji is "Oeyama Ekotoba," held by the Itsuo Museum of Art. The story depicted in this work, while maintaining its original form, has given rise to numerous works that have been handed down to the present day, including "Shuten-doji emaki," a picture scroll owned by the Suntory Museum of Art, and "Shuten-doji," included in otogi-zoshi, short narrative novels that appeared between the 14th and 16th centuries (the Nanbokucho and Muromachi periods).