Minakuchi - From 53 Stations Along the Tokaido - SOLD

Minakuchi is a polychrome woodblock print, the plate n. 51 from the series - Fifty-three Stations of the Tôkaidô (Gojusantsugi) , designed by Utagawa Hiroshige (?? ??, 1797-1858) after his travel along the Tokaido in 1832, and published by Murataya Ichibei, in 1851-52.

This plate, reports in Japanese ideogramms the signature of the artist, and the Censor's seal and Seal of Date.

A copy of our specimen is preservede at the Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco.

In good condition, except for aging signs (discolorations or stains, thinness of the paper), this original print, rich of precious and fine details, has preserved still today its beauty and charme, showing the talented graphic touch of Hiroshige.

Collect this superb Japanese snowy landscape animated by a beautiful geisha, by a old master of the ukiyo-e , Hiroshige, to embellish your house with a sophisticated Oriental touch!

The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido (???????, Tokaido Gojusan-tsugi), is a series of ukiyo-e woodcut prints created by Utagawa Hiroshige after his first travel along the Tokaido in 1832. The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido was such a popular subject that led Hiroshige to create some 30 series of woodcut prints on it, all very different one from the other by their size (oban or chuban), their designs or even their number (some series include just a few prints).

The Hoeido edition of the Tokaido is Hiroshige's best known work, and the best sold ever ukiyo-e Japanese prints. Created after Hokusai's Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji series, this print series established this new major theme of ukiyo-e, the landscape print, or fukei-ga, with a special focus on "famous views" (meisho). Hiroshige's series met a full success, not only in Japan, but later in Western countries.