REKIHAKU

The Battles of Kiso Yoshinaka folding screen painting from the main collection is one example of the folding screen paintings depicting the scenes from the Genpei War that were popular in the Edo Era. It is exceptional for the fact that all the images show scenes of tales of Yoshinaka from the Heike Monogatari and the Genpei Jousuiki. Yoshinaka, known as a defeated military commander, is the main theme of the screens. Examples of this type are rarely seen, so this is, indeed, a very rare work of art.
The right screen begins with the scene "Kiso's Supplication" in which Yoshinaka visits Yawata Shrine to offer a supplication for victory in battle. In 1180, Yoshinaka raised an army at Kiso rallying soldiers from Kouzuke.
In the following year, he set out from Shiratori-Kawara for the Yawata Shrine in Sarashina-gun to offer a supplication for victory. His troops faced a decisive battle against the main Taira forces lead by the Jo of Echigo, who took up his position at Fuse no mikuriya.
This is the scene of "Battle at Yokota-Kawara" which depicts the initial battle of the Genpei War which took place at the Chikuma River. In 1183, after that three-sided battle between the troops of Yoshinaka, Yoritomo and the Taira clan, Shida Yoshihiro of Hitachi opposed Yoritomo and when he took refuge with Yoshinaka the relationship between Yoshinaka and Yoritomo soured. Just as confrontation between the two armies seemed inevitable, negotiations by Imai Kanehira, who had grown up under the care of Yoshinaka's bodyguards, resulted in Yoshinaka's son Yoshitaka being sent as a hostage and discord was avoided.
The separation of parent and child is depicted in "Young Man at Kiyomizu." Yoshinaka's forces set out for Hokuriku. The Taira troops, with over 40,000 horsemen, were waiting at Mount Tonami at the border of Etchu and Kaga and engaged Yoshinaka's forces in a night battle. In the upper section of this whirling battle scene ("Kurikaraotoshi"), the "New Yawata Supplication" is depicted showing Yuhitsu Kakuaki of Kiso offering a supplication at the Hanyu New Yawata Shrine which had a crescent-shaped shrine of clay. Among the Taira forces that fled was Saito Sanemori who fought in defense as a lone horseman.
With a scene of Kanasashi Mitsumori holding aloft the head of Sanemori, the right screen concludes with "Death of Sanemori." The right screen paintings show scenes of action and glory and the victories of Yoshinaka's forces.

The left screen begin with the "Battle at Hojouji" where Yoshinaka's troops, following Yoritomo and Go-Shirawaka's strategy, launched a lone attack on the residence of the retired emperor. "The Battle at Rokujo-Kawara" shows the defeat by Yoshitsune's forces that entered Kyoto. "Tomoe retreats to Kanto" shows Yoshinaka, who realizing that his luck had run out, ordered Tomoe Gozen to return home after Tomoe fought a hard battle with Hatakeyama troops through Shinano's first strong spring storm. In "Battle at Awazu" Kanehira, who had become a skirmisher, is reunited with Yoshinaka at the beach at Awazu during a raging battle. Kanehira recommended suicide to Yoshinaka as "the way of a valiant leader." Yoshinaka, who was felled together with his horse in the deep snow of the peaks, did not commit suicide but was killed. Kanehira witnessed Yoshinaka's death and fought on as a lone horseman with a long blade sword clenched in his mouth. He is depicted dangling upside down from his horse, following Yoshinaka into death, in "Death of Kiso", the final scene depicted on the left screen. These are the numerous tales of defeated troops and tragedies surrounding Yoshinaka.
This pair of screens with six panels depicts the glory and tragedy of Yoshinaka and illustrates the parable "All the prosperous must decay" and the impermanence of all worldly things. This work is estimated to have been painted in the early to mid-Edo Era by a town painter. The townspeople have depicted the life of a defeated general on the folding screen paintings, but use of Yoshinaka as a motif is avoided for artwork on objects used by the feudal lords.