Background
Miyako meisho Genji awase (Illustrated comparisons of famous Genji in the capital, 都名所源氏絵合) may also be read as "Famous places in Kyoto matched with Genji." Details of the plot remain unknown to us, but it is obviously a jidaimono ("period piece" or history play, 時代物). The drama includes a storyline featuring a dramatized version of the historical warrior monk Saitô Masashibô Benkei (西塔武蔵坊弁慶 1155–1189) who served the celebrated military commander Minamoto no Yoshitsune (源義経, c. 1159-1189) after Yoshitsune had defeated him in a duel at the Gojô Bridge (五条大橋) in Kyoto. Legends about Benkei touted him as seven to eight feet tall and as strong as 100 samurai. Both Benkei and Yoshitsune were wildly popular in Japanese literature, theater, art, and culture.
Design
In Hironobu's design, Benkei carries his seven "gruesome" or deadly weapons — a huge two-prong arrow (karimata, 雁股), three-prong grappling hook on a shaft (kanabô, 金棒), large-blade saw (nokogiri, 鋸), oversized mallet (dai-tsuchi 大槌), a smaller type of sickle or scythe (kama, 鎌), a broad axe (masakari, 斧), and a halberd or pole sword (naginata, 長刀 or 薙刀).
The printing of this deluxe chûban ôkubi-e is particularly fine, with vivid colors, metallic pigment, and elaborate patterns on the robes. The surviving margins are exceptionally wide as well.
References: KNP, p. 113
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