近代彫刻の先駆者中原悌次郎の墓

函館市観光標識

中原悌二郎は，近代彫塑の夜明けを告げた作家である。　始め画家を志したが，荻原守衛・ロダンの作品に感動し彫刻に転じ，明治４３年文展に出品，第３回院展では樗牛賞を受け，第５回院展で同人に推薦された。

代表作に「石井鶴三像」，「乞食老人」，「平櫛田中像」，「若きカフカス人」等がある。「平櫛田中像」は，かのブルーデルをして，「これが彫刻だ」と絶賛され，なかでも「若きカフカス人」は，日本近代彫塑の指針を示す作品であり，荻原守衛，高村光太郎とともに，一本の柱となっている。

中原家は祖父の代より函館にあって，精米業を開き，後父の代になって釧路に移住，雑貨廻船業および漁業を営む。悌二郎は，明治２１年，次男として出生，９歳のとき旭川にある母の弟の養子となる。札幌中学校在学中，無断出奔，芸術を志す。

苦学と過労により肺結核を発し，３３歳の若さで没した。悌二郎は彫塑に情熱を捧げ，その身を燃やしたが，全作品は１１点に過ぎず，期間は１０年であり，一瞬の光芒であった。遺骨は実父忠四郎に抱かれ，当院の中原家の墓に葬られている。　１９８３年１２月　　赤光社美術協会

The Tomb of Nakahara Teijiro, A Pioneer of Modern Japanese Sculpture

Nakahara Teijiro is a pioneer of modern Japanese sculpture. He originally aspired to be a painter, but after being strongly impressed by the art works of Ogino Morie and Rodin, he started sculpting. He placed some of his sculptures to the Ministry of Education sponsored Bunten Exhibition in 1910.

After having received the Chogyu Awards at the third annual Japanese Art Associations Inten Exhibition, he was recommended to become a member of the association at the fifth Inten Exhibition.

His masterpieces includes art works entitled A Figure of Ishii Tsuruzo, An Old Beggar, A Young Caucasian, and thesculpture which received an ardent praise from the famous French sculptor Bourdelle, A Figure of Hiragushi Denchu. His sculpture A Young Caucasian is regarded as an art piece that promised a new dawn of modern Japanese sculpture. He, together with Ogino Morie and Takamura Kotaro, formed a distinct style of Japanese fine arts.

　Nakaharas grandfather owned a rice-processing business in Hakodate. His family moved to Kushiro where his father started businesses in shipping, trading and fishery. Teijiro was born in 1888 as the second son, and was adopted by his uncle who lived in Asahikawa when he was nine years old. He ran away from the Sapporo Junior High School he attended in order to pursue his dream of becoming an artist. Teijiro died at the age of thirty-three from complication of TB and overwork.

Teijiro dedicated his entire life to his art, but left only 11 pieces of sculpture during ten years of his artistic life, which was like a spark of passing light.

He now rests in the family grave alongside with his biological father, Chujiro.