京都を代表する名門スタジオ、針三昧を主宰する五打氏による釜茹でに処される石川五右衛門の図。氏ならではの濃赤で描かれた燃え盛る業火と、濛々と立ち上がる湯気を表した額が処刑の凄惨さを臨場感をもって描き出している。
またそれにより壮絶な責め苦の中にあっても、共に茹でられている子を最後まで守らんとする五右衛門の勇壮さが一層際立っている。余計な物を排した思い切りの良い構図も、五打氏らしい大胆さだと言えるだろう。
This is a back piece of Ishikawa Goemon, being boiled to death in a pot, by Gotch who runs Harizanmai, one of the most prestigious studios in Kyoto. The burning fire of his signature deep red and gaku expressing a rising cloud of steam depict the horror of the execution.
This expression also accentuates Goemon’s bravery in protecting his child being boiled with him to the very end, even in the midst of the fierce torture he was subjected to. The bold composition which eliminates unnecessary objects shows Gotch’s drastic style.
石川五右衛門は安土桃山時代に実在したとされる盗賊の首領。盗みに入る標的が強欲な武家や豪商といった権力者に限られていたため、民衆の間では義賊として持て囃された。それゆえ様々な創作物の題材として取り上げられ、曰く豊臣に滅ぼされた豪族の出身であるとか伊賀忍術の使い手であるなど伝説には事欠かない。
一説には時の為政者である豊臣秀吉を暗殺すべく伏見城の寝室に忍び込んだ際に捕縛され、一族もろとも死罪になったと伝えられている。辞世の句は「石川や 浜の真砂は 尽くるとも 世に盗人の 種は尽くまじ」であるとされ、天下の大泥棒と謳われた五右衛門の豪胆な気風が窺える。
Ishikawa Goemon is a bandit leader who is said to have existed in the Azuchi-Momoyama period (around 1600). Since his targets of theft were limited to people of power such as greedy samurai warriors and wealthy merchants, he was regarded as a chivalrous thief and was praised by the general public. As a result, he has been the subject of various dramas and novels, and there is no shortage of legends about him, such as that he was from a powerful family that was destroyed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi and also that he was a master of the Iga Ninjutsu.
According to one theory, he was captured when he snuck into the bedroom of Fushimi Castle to assassinate Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the ruler of the time, and was sentenced to death along with his entire family. His death haiku meant “Even if the sand of the beach is exhausted, the seeds of thieves will never run out”, and from this we can see the bold spirit of Goemon who was known as the greatest thief in Japan.
