Edo prints
| Design: | Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797-1861) | |||||
| Title: | In the snow at Tsukahara, Sashū | |||||
| Series title: | The illustrated abridged biography of the Buddhist priest Nichiren | |||||
| Size: | 20.4 x 31.7 cm (ōban) | |||||
| Posthumous printing from newly cut woodblocks | ||||||
| Photography: | Jacques Commandeur |
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Originally published ca. 1830 by publisher Iseya Rihei (伊勢屋利兵衛).
Artist’s signature with red Toshidama seal in left print area:
| Character | Reading | Meaning | Translation |
| 一 | ichi | one | |
| 勇 | yū | be spirited | |
| 彩 | sai | color | |
| 国 | kuni | country | |
| 芳 | yoshi | favorable | Brush of Ichiyūsai |
| 筆 | hitsu | writing brush | Kuniyoshi |
Red series title in right margin:
| Character | Reading | Meaning | Translation |
| 高 | kō | high | |
| 祖 | so | ancestor | |
| 御 | go | (honorific prefix) | |
| 一 | ichi | one | |
| 代 | dai | generation | The illustrated abridged |
| 略 | ryaku | abbreviation | biography of the Buddhist |
| 圖 | zu | drawing | priest Nichiren |
Followed by publisher Iseya Rihei’s Hayashi seal, see Marks (2011, p. 37, seal number 01-122), a round kiwame (‘approved’) censorship seal, and the print title:
| Character | Reading | Meaning | Translation |
| 佐 | sa | left | |
| 州 | shū | province | |
| 塚 | tsuka | hill | |
| 原 | hara | field | In the snow at |
| 雪 | setsu | snow | Tsukahara, Sashū |
| 中 | chū | inside | (i.e., Sado province) |
Another beautiful reproduction of this print carved and printed by David Bull can be seen here.
References
- Marks, Andreas (2011). Publishers of Japanese Woodblock Prints: A Compendium. Leiden: Hotei Publishing.
- Forrer, Matthi (1994). Japanese Prints (2 volumes in slipcase). Vol. 10-11, Genève: Collections Baur.
- Narazaki, Muneshige, ed. (1988). Ukiyo-e Masterpieces in European Collections, Volume 12. The Berlin Oriental Art Museum. Tokyo: Kodansha International.
Provenance: Fuji Arts