KUNIYOSHI. Yakusha-e. Kabuki Theater scene. History of the Eight Dogs of Satomi. Diptych. Diptych, Ôban tate-e (vertical). 355 x 490 mm. Signature: Ichiyûsai Kuniyoshi hitsu, with Yoshi Kiri seal. Publisher: Jôshû-ya Kinzô. Censor’s seal: Hama, Magome. Signs of wear. Bright colours. Moving scene from the drama Satomi hakkenden (History of the Eight Dogs of Satomi), staged at the Ichimuraza Theater in the first lunar month of 1852. Actors: Left sheet: (baby), Onoe Kikujirô II as Fusahachi nyôbo Mei (woman), and Arashi Kichisaburô III as Inuta Kobungo (man). Right Sheet: Bandô Shuka I as Inuzuka Shinno and Sawamura Chôjûrô V as Sanrin Fusahachi.The drama originates from the novel Nansô Satomi Hakkenden (The Biography of Nansô Satomi and the Eight Dog Warriors) by Takizawa Bakin. By a rather complicated set of circumstances, Fusehime, the daughter of Lord Anzai of the Satomi Clan, gives birth to eight great warriors, all fathered by a dog. The majority of the novel’s 181 chapters relate their swashbuckling adventures.