Posted by Philippe Callier on December 06, 1998 at 22:50:15:
I noticed that a few (very few) prints of the second half of the 18th century bear, immediately below the traditional formula for the signature (example: "Toyokuni ga"),a symbol known as a "kakihan". My dictionary translates kakihan as "written seal, signature"; Albert Koop and Hogitaro Inada, in Japanese Names and How to Read Them (Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd, London and Boston, 1972, p. 4 - thanks for the reference, Hans Olof !) compare it to the French "paraphe" (a shortcut signature derived from the initials); and the Diademe Antiques Glossary defines it as a "script mark of Japanese artist, used to identify metalwork, netsuke, ceramics and laquer." I found examples of kakihan on prints by Koryusai (# 162 and 166 in the catalogue of the Clarence Buckingham Collection, Volume II, by Margaret O. Gentles (Art Institute of Chicago, 1965)), and by Toyokuni I (# 257 in the Sotheby's catalogue of the sale of the Vever Collection, Part II, March 26, 1975; and another print representing a court gentleman wearing on the folds of his dress the kae-mon of the actor Nakamura Sukegaro II). I am puzzled by the use of this kakihan in prints. Is the kakihan, in these examples, a simple substitute for the more usual seal ? But then, why is it so unfrequent ? Could there be a special significance attached to the use of this device ? Are there other examples of prints bearing a kakihan?
Thanks for any information !
Philippe