In the late Edo period, the Taikoki-mono stories featuring Toyotomi Hideyoshi as their main character became popular following the publication of the Ehon Taikoki (The Illustrated Account of the Life of Taiko Hideyoshi). He also became the subject of puppet dramas, kabuki plays, kodan stories and many ukiyo-e prints. The Tokugawa shogunate, however, feared that the growing reputation of the Taikoki-mono could encourage criticism of the shogunate, and it declared the making of these stories to be a crime. Their popularity declined for a time, but there was a resurgence at the end of the Edo period when the restrictions on their publication were relaxed. Utagawa Yoshitsuya's Fifty-four Scenes from the War Chronicle of Hideyoshi are an example of this. It is a chronicle of Hideyoshi expressed in the ukiyo-e style based on the Ehon Taikoki. It is a set of fifty-four prints portraying his life, from his encounter with Hachisuka Koroku to the fall of Odawara Castle. Stories about Hideyoshi's exceptional abilities, famous scenes such as the Battle of Shizugatake, and the exploits of warlords during the Azuchi-Momoyama period are also depicted.
The exhibition explores the tale of Hideyoshi, a man from a peasant background who became the supreme ruler of Japan alongside other powerful men who captivated audiences in the Edo period through the lens of Fifty-four Scenes from the War Chronicle of Hideyoshi.