Item from the Mokuhankan Flea Market

Nissaka - from the 53 Stations of the Tokaido

Size: 27.0cm by 40.0cm (10.63 in by 15.75 in) | Enlargement | Shipping Code: [L] ?

Designer: Ando Hiroshige

Era: Mid Showa | Currency: $ / £ / €

Price: ¥ 7,000$ 57.00£ 44.50€ 51.50 [Item has been sold]

Description: This is a print from what is perhaps the single most famous series of Japanese woodblock prints ever produced - "The 53 Stations of the Tokaido", designed by Hiroshige in the 1830s.

The print you see here is a reproduction version produced in the post-war period by one of the numerous publishing houses working at that time (Adachi, Takamizawa, Yuyudo, Bijutsu-sha, Yamada Shoin, Kyoto Hanga-in, etc.) Here at Mokuhankan we have a wide selection of such prints, far too many to scan and prepare for the website one by one.

We don't always have every print in this series in stock, but try to keep as many of them available as possible. The one you see in this photo is on hand, but feel free to contact us about other designs in this series that you don't see on the site ...

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Image information: As the image shows this is another of the difficult places on the Tokaido. On the right a traveler is coming down the very steep slope while two palanquin carriers are climbing up, with their empty gear.

In the lower center is the famous large boulder named 'Yonaki Ishi' (the ‘Night Crying Stone'). According to an old legend; a woman who was in the last month of pregnancy was killed by bandits, but the baby was saved by local people, nurturing with starch syrup.

The boulder has been moved to a nearby place and the syrup, 'Kosodate Ame' (‘Child Care Candy’) is still available.

In the image a group of people are gathering around the stone. Are they trying to hear the woman’s crying?

In this dynamic composition Hiroshige drew mountains by changing the color according to the distance; gray for the nearest mountain, reddish brown for the next group and a beautiful blue for the far away mountains.

The shape of the pine trees planted along the road add some eerie feeling - a strong contrast from the beautiful and peaceful mountains in the far distance!

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