No. 31 "Maisaka: Veiw of Imagiri" from the series Fifty-Three stations of the Tokaido
Fine Arts The Japanese Prints: Ancient and ModernItem Info
Source: Print and Picture Collection
Notes:
"In the early 1830's, Hiroshige's first landscape prints appeared. He subsequently became the leading landscape artist and was especially known for his series on the Tokaido highway that connected Edo (present day Tokyo) with Kyoto. The earliest and most famous of these, generally known by the name of the publisher as 'Hoeido ban Tokaido' (Tokaido published by Hoeido), was issued from 1832-33. Hiroshige III stated sixty years later that Hiroshige's designs are after sketches he took during a journey to Kyoto, however, most of his designs are undoubtedly inspired from illustrations in guide books like the Tokaido meisho zue ('Gathering of Views of Famouse Sightss alonf the Tokaido;' 1797) and even this alleged journey cannot be verified."
from "Japanese Woodblock Prints: Artists, Publishers and Masterworks 1680-1900", Andreas Marks. Tuttle Publishing. p.132
Notes:
"Maisaka lay about six miles down the highway from Hamamatsu, at the point where Lake Hamana and the ocean are joined by a narrow stretch of water. In earlytimes Lake Hamana was isolated from the sea, but in 1499 the land between them was washed away in an earthquake and tidal wave. Because of this the mouth of the lake aquired the name Imagiri, which literally means 'now broken,' and women travelers who were betrothed regarded this place as inauspicious for their marriage prospects. It is said that they regularly walked all the way around the north shore of the lake rather than cross Imagiri by boat, as was the usual procedure."
from "The Fifty-Three Stages of the Tokaido by Hiroshige", Tokyo, Japan. Heibonsha Ltd., Publishers, 1960. plate 31
https://catalog.freelibrary.org/Record/125651
Notes:
note card with print
Station 31
Maisaka: A View of Imagiri. It is at Maisaka that we finally reach the sea. Originally there was a strip of land - it is mentioned in the Sarashina Diary - between Lake Hamana and the open ocean, but the great tidal wave of 1499 washed the land bridge away. The mountains are not actually so rugged as Hiroshige has depicted them. In the far distance, on the right, is a glimpse of Mount Fuji, covered in snow.
Bibliography:
https://catalog.freelibrary.org/Record/125651
https://catalog.freelibrary.org/Record/370941
https://catalog.freelibrary.org/Record/703108
https://catalog.freelibrary.org/Record/2030739
https://www.hiroshige.org.uk/Tokaido_Series/Tokaido_Great.htm
Image Dimensions Width: 35 cm
Call Number: Woodblock Prints - The Fifty-three Stations of the T?kaid? Road
Creator Name: Hiroshige, Utagawa, 1797-1858 - Artist