235 - KANO TAKAYASU: A RARE AND LARGE VOTIVE PLAQUE (EMA) DEPICTING THE GENERAL ZHAO YUN RESCUING THE INFANT A DOU, DATED 1795

KANO TAKAYASU: A RARE AND LARGE VOTIVE PLAQUE (EMA) DEPICTING THE GENERAL ZHAO YUN RESCUING THE INFANT A DOU, DATED 1795 By Kano Takayasu (Kano Kenpo), signed Kano Takayasu and sealed Kenpo-in Japan, dated 1795, Edo period (1615-1868) Constructed from joined softwood boards, probably Japanese cedar or cypress, and set within an ebonized architectural frame with gilt-metal fittings, the peaked upper edge recalling the gabled form of a shrine or temple roof. Boldly painted in ink and polychrome pigments directly onto the wood, depicting the Chinese general Zhao Yun (Choun) charging forward on a galloping black horse while protecting the infant A Dou (Ato, later Liu Shan) against his chest. Zhao Yun is shown in richly patterned green robes over armor, gripping a long red-shafted spear as the horse surges forward with legs fully extended and its tail streaming behind. The steep diagonal of the spear, countered by the horse's racing movement, lends the composition a powerful sense of dynamism and urgency, while the pronounced natural grain of the wooden ground remains an integral part of the image. Inscriptions: Inscribed 奉獻 Hoken [Dedicated as an offering]; 狩野賢保筆 Kano Takayasu hitsu [Painted by Kano Takayasu]; and 御寶前、寛政七乙卯歳五月吉辰、三宅氏 Gohozen, Kansei shichi kinoto-u-toshi gogatsu kisshin, Miyake-shi [Respectfully offered before the sacred presence, on an auspicious day in the fifth month of the seventh year of Kansei, the Year of the Wood Hare (1795), by the Miyake family]; with a square red seal 賢保印 Kenpo-in [Seal of Kenpo]. SIZE 87 x 111 cm Provenance: The collection of John A. Adair Jr. (1942-2025). John A. Adair Jr. (1942-2025) was an American dealer and collector who lived in Japan for more than four decades. In 1978, he founded Kurofune Antiques in Tokyo, which he operated for 35 years and developed into a noted destination for Japanese furniture, basketry, textiles, prints, and folk art. He retired in 2013 and returned to the United States. Kurofune Antiques was featured in The New York Times, The New Yorker, and The Wall Street Journal. Condition: Very good condition with expected wear and minor rubbing. Considering the age and material, the pigments are remarkably well preserved, with only scattered small losses. The wood with natural imperfections, few age cracks, and minor wear and nicks to the corners. The frame and metal fittings with age-related wear and minor losses to the gilding. The dramatic subject is drawn from one of the most celebrated episodes in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms (Sangokushi engi), the rescue of Liu Bei's infant son during the Battle of Changban in AD 208. As Cao Cao's forces overtook Liu Bei's retreating army, his family became scattered amid the fighting. Zhao Yun returned through the enemy lines and eventually discovered A Dou with Liu Bei's wounded wife, Lady Mi, beside a well. Unable to escape, she entrusted the infant to Zhao Yun before throwing herself into the well. The general secured the child beneath his armor and, wielding his spear, fought his way through the surrounding troops on horseback, returning A Dou safely to his father. The episode became an enduring image of loyalty and martial courage and, through the immense popularity of the Three Kingdoms narratives in Edo-period Japan, an established subject in Japanese painting and prints. Kano Takayasu (Kano Kenpo) was an Edo-period painter active in the late eighteenth century. Little biographical information appears to survive, and his precise position within the Kano school remains uncertain. The present signed and dated ema provides firm evidence of his activity in 1795. Museum comparison: Compare a closely related painted wooden ema depicting Zhao Yun rescuing the infant A Dou at Chion-ji Temple, Kyoto. This temple preserves numerous historical painted votive plaques donated by worshippers. Compare a related Kano school hanging scroll by Kano Kazunobu depicting Zhao Yun on horseback cradling the infant Liu Shan and carrying him to safety, dated 1840-1863, in the British Museum, museum no. 1881,1210,0.1376.