Craftsmen of Old

Data

Craftsmen of Old
Senshafuda set

Unknown
Osamefuda Social Group
1922

9.50 cm
14.00 cm

00228
https://mokuhankan.com/collection/index.php?id_for_display=00228

Print is Public Domain; Photography is:   Creative Commons License

Description

A group of senshafuda produced in 1922. The designs are modelled on an old set of screen paintings from the early 1600s, held in the Kita-in Temple in Kawagoe, Saitama. The original scenes have been rearranged in the senshafuda to creat more appealing scenes for the smaller canvas. Each of the 26 scenes is depicted in a nijo (double-senshafuda) layout and has delicate karazuri blind-embossing to the margins. A total of 25 professions have been depicted (the stencil-making profession is depicted twice). One of the interesting features of the set is the careful inclusion of small "squiggles" encroaching on the illustrations. These "squiggles", carved into the woodblocks for printing, mimic wormholes which appear on old paintings, and emphasise the age of the original artworks.

The occupations depicted are: carpenter, embroiderer, tie-dyer, stencil-applier, blacksmith, weaver, knife-sharpener, swordsmith, sculptor specializing in Buddhist statues, and makers of umbrellas, arrows, armour, brushes, sutras, thread, leatherware, fans, hinoki wood goods, barrels, tatami mats, archery bows, Buddhist rosaries, cloth, lacquerware, and straw goods.

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