There are 13
different shape types or categories of sumo menko ranging from your typical
square shape to elaborate die-cut and flower cut menko. Every sumo menko and/or sumo card is categorized
by one of these types and is the basis for the sumo menko catalog number
system. However, to really understand the system it
is important to have a good knowledge base of the 13 type categories. Here we’ll talk about what
I’ve termed the Rikishi-series or (R)-series of menko. The Japanese word for the R-series menko is
Hitokage Menko, or literally Portrait Menko, and these menko are very popular
on the secondary market because of their unique shape. In fact, these menko will usually command a
premium 2 to 3 times that of a rectangular shaped menko. The earliest known R-series set is the 1911
Kyoiku Rikishi 8-10-11-12-13
set printed by the Kyoiku Gangu Company (See Picture 1). This set was presumably printed to teach kids
about large numbers in both the Japanese kanji system and English number
system. There are probably less than a
dozen R-series sets made between 1900 and 1930 that survive today and I’ve only
seen about 5 sets in all my years of collecting sumo menko.
Picture 1 (R111 Set):
Ozeki Nishinoumi printed by the Kyoiku Gangu Company, 1911
Between 1930
and 1961 there were more than 50 R-series sets printed with the most being from
the 1930s era. Unfortunately, there is
very little information on which companies printed which sets and so that data
has probably been lost to time. The very
unique aspect of the late 1930s and early 1940s sets is that most of them
depict war images on their kesho mawashi and show a general sense of patriotism
(See Picture 2). It is amazing that any of these sets even survived the war and
all the destruction to Japanese cities.
Even more surprising were all the sets that survived in spite of the
large number of paper drives that the Japanese governments held to support the
war effort.
Picture 2 (R3761 Set): Maegashira
Itsutsushima with a tank on his kesho mawashi, 1937
After the war ended, from 1945 to 1950,
there were only a handful of sets even printed because of the severe economic
hardships that the Japanese people were enduring. Many Japanese couldn’t even afford food, let
alone “frivolous” items such as toys and games.
In the early 1950s, however, there was an emergence of menko that were
printed in an effort to increase the basic knowledge of Japanese children
especially in the area of math. One such
set was the 1950 Rikishi 2 Set which has a simple math problem for kids to
solve and would be used to play menko(See Picture 3).
Picture 3 (R501): Yokozuna Azumafuji with a simple math problem for the Fighting Number, 1950
The 1950s saw a modest reemergence of the R-series menko which resulted in the colossal 1953 Kagome Rikishi 7 set, which has historical significance because of the 7 Yokozuna and 4 Ozeki that appear in the set at various stages in their career. For those that collect American baseball cards, this set is comparable to the 1952 Topps set in terms of rarity, physical size and star power.
Picture 5(R531): The
40th-46th Yokozuna from the back
By
the early 1960s, the sumo menko era was coming to a close because of Japan’s
increased status across the globe and the pressure for kids to focus more on
schoolwork and less on games. Also, television
sets were in almost every Japanese home which occupied more and more of kid’s free
time and left less and less for menko.
The last R-series menko was made in 1961 by the Hoshi Gangu Company and
included Taiho and Kashiwado who would carry sumo through the 1960s. However, this set was a half-hearted attempt
and the quality control and images were very poor. Unfortunately, a sad-ending to an otherwise
popular and unique category of Hitokage Menko, Portrait Menko and Rikishi
Series sets.
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