Meiji prints


  Design: Yōshū Chikanobu (1838-1912)  
  Print title: Make-up  
  Album/series title: Azuma Fūzoku (Customs of the East)  
  Size: 21.2 x 30.2 cm (ōban)  
  Original woodblock print    
  Photography: Jacques Commandeur
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Chikanobu Azuma Fuzoku Make-up

Enlargement


Special effects: burnishing (sho-men-zuri) on the lady’s hair and on her obi; embossing (kara-zuri) on the fan lying on the floor.

On the burnishing of the lady’s obi are written the characters (not visible in the photograph) 源女口 which translates into something like “source female mouth”.

Artist’s signature in the bottom left print area:

Character Reading Meaning Translation
       
leaf  
shū discipline  
chika circumference  
nobu prolong Yōshū Chikanobu

Series/album title and print number in the orange cartouche in the right margin of the print:

Character Reading Meaning Translation
       
an peace  
tsu harbor, ferry  
matsu end  
style  
zoku customs Customs of the East,
       
roku six number six

Printing and publishing date in left margin:

Character Reading Meaning Translation
       
mei light Printed in the
ji government Meiji era,
san three  
ten  
shi four  
nen year the 34th year (= 1901),
kyū nine  
gatsu month the 9th month (= September),
     
tsuitachi the first day  
in stamp  
satsu print the first day.
       
ko this Published in
toshi year the same year,
kon this  
getsu month the same month,
itsu fifth  
ka day  
hatsu emit  
go the 5th day.

Followed by the publisher’s address, telephone number and name:

Character Reading Meaning Translation
       
in stamp  
satsu print  
ken combine  
hatsu emit  
go  
sha person Printer and publisher,
       
east  
kyō capital  
shi city Tokyo city,
ni sun  
hon origin  
hashi bridge  
ku district Nihonbashi district,
yoshi good luck  
kawa river  
chō quarter Yoshikawa quarter,
ni two  
ban number  
chi earth, land number 2.
       
den electricity  
wa conversation  
ni two  
sen thousand  
ni two  
hyaku hundred  
hachi eight  
ten  
roku six  
ban number Telephone number: 2286.
       
matsu pine  
ki tree  
hei level  
kichi good luck Matsuki Heikichi


References


Provenance: Gallery Somei-do

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