Ebira-no-ume 箙の梅

Lit. the Plum Quiver. A pictorial subject taken from an incident during the Genpei 源平 war. Before going to battle the Minamoto 源 general Kajiwara Kagesue 梶原景季 (1162-1200) took a branch of flowering plum and stuck it in his arrow quiver. This elegant gesture greatly impressed his courtly Taira 平 foes at the 1184 battle of the Ikuta woods, Ikuta-no-mori 生田の森 in Settsu 摂津 (modern Osaka). The event is described in Genpei seisuiki 源平盛衰記 and later was developed into the *noh 能 play Ebira 箙, the ballad drama, jōruri 浄瑠璃, Hirakana seisuiki ひらかな盛衰記, and the *kabuki 歌舞伎 play Genta 源太, which provided the inspiration for depictions of the theme in *ukiyo-e 浮世絵 prints.