Tomoe Gozen in Japanese Prints
Tomoe Gozen is a popular subject and appears in many prints, many from the late Edo Period and early Meiji period. The way Tomoe is depicted does not always match up to her description in the Heike Monogatari, nevertheless she is almost always depicted as a mounted warrior.
Tomoe Gozen, Kikuchi Yosai(1781-1878)
Tomoe is shown here wielding the weapons described in the Heike Monogatari, both a bow and a long sword. Tomoe is easily identifiable in these prints as her hair is almost always worn in the above style, not in a helmet.
Tomoe is shown here wielding the weapons described in the Heike Monogatari, both a bow and a long sword. Tomoe is easily identifiable in these prints as her hair is almost always worn in the above style, not in a helmet.
Tomoe Gozen, Kitao Masayoshi Izumi Ichibei, 1764-1824
Tomoe Gozen is shown here in action. This picture is reminiscent of the way in which Tomoe grabs Onda no Hachiro Moroshige and effortlessly throws him down upon the saddle of his horse before taking his head.
Tomoe Gozen is shown here in action. This picture is reminiscent of the way in which Tomoe grabs Onda no Hachiro Moroshige and effortlessly throws him down upon the saddle of his horse before taking his head.
Tomoe Gozen Playing the Koto and Riding Out to War, c. 1888
This diptych print shows the two sides of Tomoe, the feminine and the warrior. The Heike Monogatari makes particular note of Tomoe's feminine features, citing features such as her “white skin" along with her prowess with weapons, so she remains an ideal of feminine beauty even while performing a masculine role. Putting Tomoe in a domestic, peaceful, setting draws attention to the anomaly that is the female warrior, the very thing that has and continues to draw so much attention and interest to Tomoe. It is also of note that Tomoe is depicted in the war scene wielding a naginata, a weapon that she is not associated with in the Heike but is considered to be more of a woman's weapon.
This diptych print shows the two sides of Tomoe, the feminine and the warrior. The Heike Monogatari makes particular note of Tomoe's feminine features, citing features such as her “white skin" along with her prowess with weapons, so she remains an ideal of feminine beauty even while performing a masculine role. Putting Tomoe in a domestic, peaceful, setting draws attention to the anomaly that is the female warrior, the very thing that has and continues to draw so much attention and interest to Tomoe. It is also of note that Tomoe is depicted in the war scene wielding a naginata, a weapon that she is not associated with in the Heike but is considered to be more of a woman's weapon.