Keyblock drawing for Toki Daishirō

One Hundred Tales from Japan and China was Yoshitoshi’s first print series to explore the world of the supernatural. The title refers to “one hundred tales, ” the popular storytelling game that was played in a room lit by one hundred oil-lamp wicks, one of which would be blown out after every story. Here the hero Toki Daishirō is wrestling with a vajra warrior, a large wooden statue that usually guards Buddhist temples but has come to life. This is a rare, nearly final drawing for the key block (the block that prints the black outlines and main details), and it shows the lines almost exactly as they would later be carved. Some of the areas to be printed in gray have been indicated as such with an ink wash, and the reverse sections of the green band wrapped around the vajra warrior are indicated with yellow. Most likely this drawing was executed by one of Yoshitoshi’s students and not by the master himself, since it represents a technical step within the production process.