Katô Kiyomasa doodt een tijger 1830

Sugai Baikan rendered this woodblock print, titled "Katô Kiyomasa Kills a Tiger," sometime between 1784 and 1844. The image dramatically depicts the iconic samurai Katô Kiyomasa locked in mortal combat with a tiger. Here, the tiger, often a symbol of raw power and untamed nature, is subdued beneath Kiyomasa’s strength. The image invokes ancient myths of heroic figures battling beasts, echoing legends where man confronts and conquers the wild. Yet, the tiger also represents inner turmoil and primal instincts, a theme echoed in the Labors of Hercules, where each task symbolized a conquest over personal demons. The warrior's triumph over the tiger is more than a simple victory; it is an assertion of control over chaos. This motif reappears through history. Note, for example, its echo in ancient Mesopotamian cylinder seals, where divine heroes grapple with wild animals. In essence, these images embody the eternal human struggle to assert order over the unpredictable forces of nature and our own inner selves.