Hour of the Snake: 9:00 - 11:00

One design from Utamaro's famous series 'Twelve Hours in the Yoshiwara' - actually 24 hours, as the day is here broken into 12 2-hour groups.

This print represents the Hour of the Snake, which equates roughly to what we would call 10:00 am. A courtesan emerges from the brothel's bathhouse and is offered tea by a courtesan-in-training.

The series makes extensive use of tiny flakes of gold leaf scattered in the background. This version is from the Adachi Company, probably from the 70s to early 80s.