Rare / Genuine Work: Utagawa Kunisada (4th Gen Toyokuni) / "Ishikawa Goemon" "Child Gorōichi"

Artist: Utagawa Kunisada (4th Generation Toyokuni)
Title: Ishikawa Goemon and Isshi Gorōichi
Year of Creation: Kaei 3 (1851) - 175 years ago from 2026
Held in the collections of Ritsumeikan University and Waseda University
This is an old item and is in poor condition with fading, insect damage, etc.
However, this single piece has great charm.

The story that gave rise to the Goemon bath
Ishikawa Goemon, known as a righteous thief who stole from the powerful tax collectors and distributed the wealth to the common people, must have had strong aspirations.
This is because he infiltrated Fushimi Castle, the residence of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and attempted to steal Hideyoshi's favorite Chidori Incense Burner from his bedroom.
However, the plover on the lid of the incense burner cried out, alerting them and leading to his capture.
Consequently, Ishikawa Goemon and his family were sentenced to be boiled alive at the execution ground near the Kamo River in present-day Kyoto, by the Sanjo Ohashi bridge (where public executions and beheadings took place at the time).
Even for Ishikawa Goemon, the great thief of the realm, the execution of his own child must have brought immense sorrow, suffering, and despair.
Before the flames for boiling the cauldron could flare up, he turned as pale as an otherworldly chill.
This contrasting composition is masterful.
He wears a desperate and pleading expression.
This ukiyo-e is the central and main piece of a triptych, with other existing prints depicting his capture and his boiling. In the scene of him being boiled, he holds his child aloft with both arms, desperately trying to prolong their life even for a moment.
His death poem reads: Ishikawa ya Hama no masago wa tsuku tomo mo Yo ni nusutto no tane wa tsukemaji (Even if the sands on the shore of Ishikawa run out, the seeds of thieves in this world will never be exhausted).
In modern times, annual tribute has been replaced by taxes, and the collection system is kept just enough to prevent peasant uprisings, with the populace continuously and skillfully exploited by the powerful. In the near future, a modern-day Ishikawa Goemon might make headlines, much like Arsène Lupin.