Taira no Kiyomori Haunted by Strange Sights (Taira Kiyomori kaii o miru zu)

Taira no Kiyomori (1118-1181) was a military leader during the late Heian period. Towards the end of his life he was tormented by the idea that the ghosts of the enemies he had killed would come back to take retribution, and in this print he is depicted in one such hallucination. Kiyomori stands on the veranda of his palace looking out over the snow-covered garden, his lover cowering to the side. In his madness the snow-covered trees, stone lanterns and rocks have been transformed into skulls and skeletons. As is often the case in Japanese prints, this depiction of Kiyomori is based on a popular theatrical performance – where the Osaka-based kabuki actor Nakamura Utaemon IV (1769-1852) plays the role of Kiyomori, and who performed this role in the first month of 1845.