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Meiji prints

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	Design:	Yamamoto Shōun (1870-1965)
	Print title:	Sound of insects
	Album/series title:	Shiki no Nagame (Scenes of the four seasons)
	Size:	20.4 x 30.1 cm (ōban)
	Original woodblock print
	Photography:	Jacques Commandeur

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Enlargement

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Special effects: embossing (kara-zuri) on the blue kimono of the girl on the right; embossed fabric printing (nuno-me-zuri) on the pink kimono of the girl on the right and on the fan with Mount Fuji on the left; silver metallic pigments on the collars of the two ladies on the left and on the obi of the second lady from the left.

Published in 1906 by Matsuki Heikichi.

This print has no vertical fold in the middle, meaning that it was issued separately and only later as part of an orihon (i.e., folding book).

Artist’s signature and red Shōun seal in bottom right print area:

Character	Reading	Meaning	Translation
昇	shō	rise
雲	un	cloud	Shōun

Series title in right margin:

Character	Reading	Meaning	Translation
四	shi	four
季	ki	seasons
能	no	’s
な	na
可	ga		Scenes of the
免	me	scenes	four seasons

Followed by print title:

Character	Reading	Meaning	Translation
虫	mushi	insect
の	no	’s
声	koe	voice	Sound of insects

Printing and publishing dates in left margin:

Character	Reading	Meaning	Translation
明	mei	light	Printed in the
治	ji	government	Meiji era,
三	san	three
十	jū	ten
九	kyū	nine
年	nen	year	the 39th year (= 1906),
十	jū	ten
二	ni	two
月	gatsu	month	the 12th month (= December),
十	jū	ten
五	go	five
日	nichi	day
印	in	stamp
刷	satsu	print	the 15th day.
今	kon	now	Published in
年	nen	year	the same year,
今	kon	now
月	getsu	month	the same month,
廿	jūnyū	twenty
八	hachi	eight
日	nichi	day
発	hatsu	emit
行	kō	go	the 28th day.

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

Character	Reading	Meaning	Translation
画	ga	drawing
作	saku	make
印	in	stamp
刷	satsu	print
兼	ken	combine
発	hatsu	emit
行	kō	go	Painter, printer,
者	sha	person	and publisher,
東	tō	east
京	kyō	capital
市	shi	city	Tokyo city,
日	ni	sun
本	hon	origin
橋	hashi	bridge
区	ku	district	Nihonbashi district,
吉	yoshi	good luck
川	kawa	river
町	chō	quarter	Yoshikawa quarter,
二	ni	two
番	ban	number
地	chi	earth, land	number 2,
松	matsu	pine
木	ki	tree
平	hei	level
吉	kichi	good luck	Matsuki Heikichi,
電	den	electricity
話	wa	conversation
二	ni	two
千	sen	thousand
二	ni	two
百	hyaku	hundred
八	hachi	eight
十	jū	ten
六	roku	six
番	ban	number	telephone number: 2286.

Name and address of the publisher in romaji in left bottom margin: “Sold by Daikokaya, H. Matsuki, No. 2, Yoshikawa-cho, Ryogoku, Tokyo, Japan.”

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References

• Hokkaidō Obihiro Museum Of Art (1998). Meiji no ukiyo-e hanga (Ukiyo-e woodblock prints of the Meiji period). Hokkaidō: Hokkaidō Obihiro Museum Of Art and Hokkaidō Shinbun Press.

• Merritt, Helen, and Yamada, Nanako (1992). Guide to Modern Japanese Woodblock Prints: 1900 - 1975. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press.

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Provenance: The Arts and Designs of Japan website of Peter and Lois Gilder.