The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of April 25, 2024

Iwai Hanshirō IV as a Woman with a Sword

Iwai Hanshirō IV as a Woman with a Sword

1791
(Japanese, 1762–1819)
Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)
color woodblock print
Sheet: 31.5 x 14 cm (12 3/8 x 5 1/2 in.)
Gift from J. H. Wade 1921.1287
Location: not on view

Description

In this unidentified role, Iwai Hanshirō IV is costumed as a woman with long flowing hair, wielding a sword. Men of the Edo period shaved their head from the forehead back to the crown, leaving the side and back hair long, though tied in an updo. Even after the practice was abandoned for Kabuki theater actors specializing in female roles, they kept the custom of concealing the area that would once have been bare, so Hanshirō has a murasaki no bōshi (紫の帽子), or purple headband, attached to his wig.
  • ?–1921
    William S. Spaulding [1865–1937] and John T. Spaulding [1870–1948], Boston, MA
    (American Art Association, November 18, 1921 sale, lot 638)
    1921
    (Yamanaka & Co., sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1921–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • {{cite web|title=Iwai Hanshirō IV as a Woman with a Sword|url=false|author=Katsukawa Shunei|year=1791|access-date=25 April 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1921.1287