Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
ca. 1874
Donated by Tanba Tsuneo
This piece portrays the battle between the forces of the new government (in red), having invaded the area beneath Aizu castle, and the army of the former Shogunate (in purple), made up firstly of samurai from Aizu Domain. At the castle gates, we can see a sortie being carried out by the Aizu Domain army, as well as women wielding naginatas in battle, all while fire creeps up the castle, communicating the tension of the heat of battle.
Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-92) was an ukiyo-e artist during the last years of the Shogunate into the Meiji era, taking on a wide variety of subjects, such as actors, historical scenes, paintings of warriors, and portraits of beautiful women, being active during the turbulent years of the change from the Shogunate era into Meiji.