Hiroshige: Fuchû
Move your mouse over image or click to enlarge

Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858)

A night scene in front of the gate to the 2nd street of the entertainment district of Fuchû: A man is talking from his horse with the waitress of an inn, who is carrying a lantern.

Title: Fuchû

Series: Gojûsan tsugi (53 stations), the so-called "Jinbutsu (o. Jimbutsu)-Tôkaidô"

Signature: Hiroshige ga

Publisher: (Murataya Ichigorô, Muraichi, Edo)

Censors: Hama and Magome

Date: 1851/52

Size: Vertical Chûban, 22 x 16,8 cm (image)

Very good impression, very good and fresh colours. Unbacked, with good margins, as usually a little bit narrower at right. Lower margin minimally fingerstained, lower right corner a little creased, some tiny binding holes along the left margin of the image, small printer's spot at upper left margin. Overall very good condition.
Here the twentieth station within this charming and surprisingly rarely (especially in fresh colours) seen-series, which is commonly known as "Jinbutsu-Tôkaidô" (Figure Tokaido) or, after the publisher, "Muraichi-Tôkaidô". Since in this series two images were printed on one sheet of paper, many sheets do not bear any signature, censorship or publisher's marks.
Cf. Art Institute of Chicago (AIC) 1966.280; MFA Boston 06.1527; Honolulu Museum of Art Michener Coll. 22881 et al; Chazen Museum of Art 1980.1044b; Norton Simon Museum P.1967.27.040ab; National Diet Library (NDL), DOI 10.11501/2541077 (the whole series)

sold