Japan, 1904 (Meiji 37)This highly dynamic war triptych (senso-e) is attributed to the acclaimed Meiji-era master Kobayashi Kiyochika. Published in 1904, it dates to the first year of the Russo-Japanese War. The scene, with thinly veiled Japanese propagandistic irony, illustrates a chaotic and humiliating event for the Russian side: defeated Russian soldiers fleeing from Jiuliancheng (Kyūrenjō in Japanese) panic in the confusing terrain and begin firing upon their own comrades at Tosanjo. The composition is masterfully dominated by the dramatic visual effect of billowing white gun smoke, from which emerges a chaotic tangle of falling soldiers in blue uniforms and rearing horses. Although the print is unsigned, the excellent handling of atmosphere and action is highly characteristic of Kiyochika's war reportage prints.