Utagawa Kuniyoshi’s 55 Cats on the Tōkaidō: EP. 6 Shiga & Kyoto скачать в хорошем качестве

Utagawa Kuniyoshi’s 55 Cats on the Tōkaidō: EP. 6 Shiga & Kyoto

Great to have you back on our journey through Kuniyoshi’s 55 Cats on the Tōkaidō. Last time, we passed through Mie, where old beliefs lingered and the cats swung between affection and self-interest. Today, we enter the final stretch — Shiga Prefecture and Kyoto — where the road climbs, the pace slows, and Kuniyoshi begins to bring this strange journey to a close. Look first at these three cats. Two greet each other nose to nose, calm and balanced, while a third watches closely, back arched and tail lowered, clearly plotting trouble. The caption reads ‘buchi jama’, ‘a spotted interruption’. That mischievous buchi cat is about to break the peaceful exchange, nudging us into Tsuchiyama with a moment of quiet tension. Next, a heavily patterned buchi cat stands firm and muscular. Its markings run from head to tail — ‘mina buchi’, ‘all over spotted’ — which slides neatly into Minakuchi. A solid, grounded presence as the road continues upward. Beside it is the most painful image in the entire series. A painfully thin cat meows, ribs visible beneath its skin, labelled ‘mijime’, ‘miserable’. With a small sound shift, the word bends into Ishibe. Kuniyoshi doesn’t soften this moment. Hunger and hardship were as much a part of the road as play and wit. Then, warmth returns. A white cat with a red collar sleeps face-down on a traditional heater, the early kotatsu. At the time, it had no tabletop; charcoal was placed inside, and cats often lay directly on top to keep warm. This gentle image bends into Kusatsu — a moment of rest and comfort after suffering. Next comes confidence. A large cat looks upward, eyes locked on an unaware mouse. Labelled ‘jōzu’, ‘skilled’, it knows exactly what it’s doing — unlike the distracted hunter earlier on the road or the clumsy cats we met in Shizuoka. Experience shows here, and ‘jōzu’ slides neatly into Ōtsu. And finally, we reach Kyoto. A tiger-patterned cat stands in a hunter’s pose, prey already caught. The caption reads ‘gyau’, a sharp cry of victory, which Kuniyoshi pushes into Kyō, the historical name for Kyoto. The journey ends not in exhaustion, but in accomplishment. So what does this long road of cats leave us with? What I see is an artist with a remarkable and deeply playful imagination. Kuniyoshi was a proud Edokko, born in Nihonbashi, the very first stop on this road. At a time when travel was difficult and information moved slowly, most people would never see the full Tōkaidō with their own eyes. Kuniyoshi likely never did either — unlike Hiroshige, there is no record of such a journey. Instead, at around fifty years old, he completed the road through imagination, language, and his favourite subject: cats. Today, many of us still cannot walk this road end to end. But we have maps, images, and videos that help us picture it. What often remains difficult is language and perspective. Without Japanese knowledge, meaning fragments. Without awareness of how people in the past saw their world, modern assumptions quietly reshape what we think we see. Bridging those gaps — between languages, and between past and present — is one of the things Japan Annotations hopes to continue doing. And with that, we reach the end of this series. From Edo to Kyoto, fifty-five cats, and fifty-five terrible, wonderful puns. If you enjoyed this journey, please like the video, share it with anyone who loves cats or Japanese art, leave a comment about your favourite cat on the road, and subscribe if you’d like to continue travelling through Japan’s past together. Thank you for staying all the way to the end. See you next time. __________ Utagawa Kuniyoshi 歌川国芳 Cats Suggested as the Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road 其まま地口　猫飼好五十三疋　(そのままじぐち みゃうかいこうごじゅうさんびき) 1848 __________ #japanesehistory #japanhistory #japaneseculture #japaneseart #historicjapan #history #japanesetradition #japanesetraditional #japanesetraditionalculture #historylovers #historylover #japan #japanese #ukiyoe #japanesepainting #japanesepaintings #japaneseart #edo #edoperiod #edojapan #meiji #meijiera #meijirestoration #cat #cats #catlovers #catshorts #japantravel