Gallery 7: Pochibukuro (Money Envelopes)

Unidentified Artist. Actor in the Kabuki Play Shibaraku. 1920-1930s. 4.2 x 9.0 cm

Pochibukuro are small envelopes for gifts of money. These were presented to children on New Year and to adults on celebratory occasions. Although the artist is often not identified, several well known Meiji period and shin-hanga artists created designs for these ephemera. Themes included many of the same topics characteristic of woodblock prints including landscapes, kabuki, and portraits of women. As can be seen in the images below, a popular theme was the portrayal of a Maiko from behind highlighting her high fashion kimono. Pochibukuro were often produced with high printing standards which might include the use of metalic pigments. This gallery features pochibukuro that were mostly created between 1910 and 1940.

Hasegawa Sadanobu III (1881-1963)

The six pochibukuro below are from the series Kumadori Soroi. Each envelope depicts the Kumadori of a role from a kabuki drama. The date of publication has not been determined for this set.

Izutsu Okamoto (fl. ca. 1920s-1930s)

The following pochibukuro by Izutsu Okamoto is unique in that panels can be opened to reveal an additional component to the scene that is printed on an enclosed folded sheet of writing paper.

Enomoto Chikatoshi (1898-1973)

Hirai Fusato

Ito Toshio

Ito Shisui (1898-1972)

Kasamatsu Shirō (1898-1991)

Kobayashi Kaichi (1896-1968)

Published by Sakuraiya, Kyoto in the 1910s-1930s.

Kamishita Chikamine (Kamishita Shuho)

The following are from sets of pochibukuro by Kamishita Chikamine (Kamishita Shuho) from the series Images of Famous Actors of Today published by Masukawa Yasukichi. Each set featured portraits of four actors from specific kabuki performances staged in the 1920s. The polchibukuro are assumed to have been printed close to the dates of the performances.

The two images below were acquired without the associated envelope or the accompanying additional two protraits.

The following are three sets of pochibukuro from the series Stage Picture Scroll. The first collection was errantly enclosed in the envelope for another set and is included here without the corresponding envelope.

Ochiai Mansui 

Reinosuke

Takahashi Haruka (Dates Unknown)

Takehisa Yumeji (1884-1934)

Tanaka Shikō

Yamakawa Shūhō (1898-1944)

Works by yet to be identified artists.

Similar to another pochibukuro in the collection by Izutsu Okamoto, the following envelope depicting Yasaka Shrine by an unidentified artist includes panels that reveal an additional component to the image when opened. The additional image is printed on folded writing paper enclosed within the pochibukuro.

These four pochibukuro are from the set Kabuki New 32 Favorite Plays which was published for Matsuzakaya department store in the 1930s or earlier. These depict kabuki actors on hagoita, wooden paddles used to hit shuttlecocks.

A set of pochibukuro depicting Noh scenes by an unidentified artist.

A set of pochibukuro depicting images of early ukiyo-e masters. Late 1920s- early 1930s.

The following set is composed of five envelopes, each which is part of a larger scene when put together. Comparing the poses to other envelopes in the collection suggests that several others may also have originally been part of a larger scene. Each envelope is about 5.5 x 15.5 cm.

The following series of pochibukuro depicts images adapted from the series The Storehouse of Loyal Retainers (Chûshingura) by Ando (Utagawa) Hiroshige (1797-1858). The original sixteen Hiroshige prints were published in the horizontal oban format by Izumiya Ichibei between 1835 and 1839. Each of the images on the pochibukuro reproduce a small section from each of the original sixteen prints with the exception of the print for Act XI, The Night Attack, Part 4. This pochibukuro set was published pre-WWII. The prints shown below are a composite of 14 pochibukuro first acquired for the collection combined with the missing pochibukuro for Act X and the box and packaging envelopes that were later acquired as part of a complete set.

A set of 12 small pochibukuro featuring Kabuki actors by an unknown artist. Pre-WWII.

Below are images adapted from an 1892 print series of biographies and portraits of kabuki actors Ichikawa Danjūrō I to IX by Utagawa Yoshiiku. These envelopes depict the actors in roles that they they made famous in the Jūhachiban (eighteen best kabuki plays). In contrast to the other portraits, the depiction of Ichikawa Danjuro I is in the Torii syle. Six of the images (Ichikawa Danjuro I, II, III, IV; V, and VII) are also represented on an uncut sheet of pochibukuro in the collection from the 1910s-1920s which can be viewed in Gallery 1.

This following six larger pochibukuro appear to have been created for either the Taishō or Shōwa Imperial Investiture Ceremonies (1917 or 1928).

A Set Depicting the Crests (Mon) of Kabuki Actors and Characters.