Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III) (1786–1865) Ichikawa Ebizō V as Horibe Yahei Kanamaru (堀部弥兵衛金丸) The Oldest Man Among the Forty-Seven Series: Seichū Gishi Den (誠忠義士伝) Technique: Woodblock print (ukiyo-e), color (nishiki-e) Date: Japan, 1864 (late Edo period) Publisher: Ishida Eisuke Series: Seichū Gishi Den (誠忠義士伝) – Stories of the Faithful Samurai (aka. 47 Ronnin) Format: Ōban, approx. 35 × 24 cm (14 × 9 inches) Signature: Signed Kunisada 1. Impression & Colors: A magnificent and arresting bust portrait depicting the great Ichikawa Ebizō V in the role of Horibe Yahei Kanamaru — the oldest warrior among the forty-seven rōnin. The casting is inspired: Ebizō V, one of the towering figures of nineteenth-century kabuki and a master of powerful aragoto roles, brings an elemental grandeur to the depiction of this seventy-seven-year-old warrior. The actor's face is rendered in an extraordinary display of expressive power — deep furrows carved into the brow, the mouth set in a fierce grimace of determination, the eyes burning with an intensity that transcends age. Grey brows and wisps of silver hair at the temples convey the character's advanced years, while the purple-tinged shading at the temples and jaw adds to the impression of a face weathered by decades of service. The warrior raises one hand overhead in a dramatic gesture, fingers splayed and reaching toward a staff or weapon held above, while the other arm is cocked at the side. Over his shoulders, chainmail armour (kusari katabira) in a fine crosshatch pattern of gold-brown covers both upper arms — a detail of careful martial preparation. The black-and-white dan-gawari zigzag robe billows outward in bold, sharp-edged triangles that fill the composition with graphic energy against the deep blue-grey background. Beneath the outer robe, layers of colour emerge: grey-blue and purple at the collar, crimson red at the lining, and a richly patterned obi in teal and gold at the waist, from which the matched daishō swords hang with ornate fittings rendered in metallic detail. A blue-and-white checked headband (hachimaki) with a geometric pattern wraps around the warrior's head — a distinctly individual touch that distinguishes this figure from the standard white headbands worn by many of the other rōnin. The biographical cartouche in the upper left, with the notation "Edo rusui" (Edo caretaker) identifying Yahei's official position, provides the warrior's history. The kana syllable 「ぬ」 appears in a small gold cartouche. The carving by Ishida Horichō is superb throughout, particularly in the rendering of the actor's powerfully expressive face and the fine detail of the armour and textile patterns. 2. Paper: Trimmed to the image with minimal margins, consistent with album mounting. The paper displays the expected character of over 160 years of age. Some minor toning overall; otherwise clean and stable. No significant damage, repairs, or losses. 3. Horibe Yahei Kanamaru — The Oldest Man Among the Forty-Seven Horibe Yahei Kanamaru (堀部弥兵衛金丸, also read Akizane, 1627–1703) was the oldest warrior among the forty-seven loyal retainers — seventy-seven years old on the night of the raid, an age that would have been remarkable for the era even in peaceful circumstances. He served the Asano clan as Edo rusui — the caretaker of the lord's Edo residence — a position of considerable trust and responsibility, holding a hereditary estate of 300 koku and drawing a retirement stipend of 20 koku. He was, in effect, the senior Asano representative permanently stationed in the capital, the man responsible for maintaining the lord's interests in Edo while the daimyō was in his home domain. Yahei's place in the Chūshingura legend extends beyond his own extraordinary commitment, for it was he who brought into the Asano household the man who would become the most famous swordsman among the forty-seven: Horibe Yasubei Taketsune. The young Yasubei — orphaned at thirteen, trained in Edo, and already legendary for his role in the duel at Takadanobaba in 1694, where he cut down multiple opponents in defence of a kinsman — was a wandering rōnin with no lord and no prospects when Yahei heard of his extraordinary skill. So impressed was the old man that he petitioned Lord Asano himself for permission to adopt Yasubei as his son-in-law, marrying him to his daughter Hori and bringing him into the clan with a stipend of 200 koku. It was a fateful decision: without Yahei's patronage, Yasubei would never have been an Akō retainer, and the conspiracy would have lost one of its most formidable fighting men and most passionate advocates for immediate action. Father-in-law and adopted son could hardly have been more different in temperament. Yasubei was an Edo radical — hot-blooded, impatient, pushing for immediate violent action from the earliest days after Lord Asano's death. Yahei, despite his age, was a man of patience who aligned with Ōishi Kuranosuke's long game of careful planning and deception. Yet witnesses noted that despite the absence of any blood relationship, the two men's gestures and mannerisms became strikingly alike over the years — a detail preserved in a memorandum by Denemon Horiuchi, suggesting a bond that transcended mere family obligation. On the night of the raid, the seventy-seven-year-old Yahei armed himself with an unsigned katana of exceptional length — 3 shaku, significantly longer than the regulation limit — and carried no wakizashi at all, only a naginata (polearm). For a man of his age to wield a full-length naginata in close-quarters combat within the confines of a mansion speaks to either extraordinary physical preservation or extraordinary will — or both. He and Yasubei fought side by side that night, the old man and the young swordsman he had brought into the family, united in purpose as they had been in life. Following the successful vendetta, Yahei was granted the honour of seppuku on the 4th day of the 2nd month, 1703. His death poem carries the quiet patience that had defined his long wait: "Perhaps tomorrow the snow will stop and my wish will be fulfilled." He was seventy-seven years old — a man who had lived long enough to see his lord avenged and to die beside the son he had chosen. He is buried alongside his comrades — and alongside Yasubei — at Sengaku-ji temple in Tokyo. 4. The Seichū Gishi Den Series: Loyalty, Theatre, and the Forty-Seven Rōnin Kunisada's Seichū Gishi Den is one of the artist's most ambitious late-career series, depicting all forty-seven loyal retainers plus key associated figures as portrayed by the leading kabuki actors of the day. It is a masterful fusion of two of Edo Japan's great cultural obsessions — the Chūshingura vendetta legend and the kabuki theatre. Each print pairs a historical warrior with a contemporary actor, giving us both a gallery of heroes and a snapshot of the Edo theatre world at its peak. With its consistent design, bold compositions, and rich biographical texts, the series is a collector's treasure — each sheet adds another chapter to Japan's most beloved tale of loyalty and sacrifice.