Object number1987.21.27

Sandbar at Mitsumata

Portfolio/Seriesfrom the series Thirty-six Views of the Eastern Capital

Date1862

Artist Utagawa Hiroshige II (二代目歌川広重) (Japanese, 1826-1869)

Publisher Sagamiya Tokichi (Ai-To) (Japanese)

CultureJapanese

MediumWoodblock print (nishiki-e): ink and color on rice paper

DimensionsImage: 13 7/16 x 8 7/8 in. (34.2 x 22.5 cm)
Sheet (Vertical ōban): 14 5/8 x 9 1/8 in. (37.2 x 23.1 cm)

Credit LineGift of Celia Faulkner Clevenger, class of 1958

On View

Not on view

Period19th c (Edo Period)

Classification(s)

SignedOn recto, signed lower right, in block: 広重画 (Hiroshige ga)

InscribedOn recto, upper right, in block: 東都三十六景 (Thirty-six Views of the Eastern Capital); 中洲三ッ俣 (Nakazu Mitsumata) On recto within image, in block: 改印：戌三改 (Censor's seal: Dog 3 aratame); 彫師：なし (No blockcutter's mark)

MarkingsOn recto, lower left, censor's seal partially trimmed in block: 戌三改 (Dog 3 aratame) On recto, lower left, publisher's seal partially trimmed in block: 相ト (Aito) for 相模屋藤吉 (Sagamiya Tōkichi)

BibliographyLink, Howard A; Tadashi Kobayashi. Prints by Utagawa Hiroshige in the James A. Michener Collection. Honolulu: Honolulu Academy of Arts, 1991, p. 141DescriptionDepiction of a sandbar with grasses and a figure sitting with a small fire and a boat at center. In the background at left is a bridge and boats with sails and at right are buildings and covered boats. The figure at center is using fire to char his boat as a preservation method, a popular process in the Edo period called shou sugi ban, also known at yakisugi. This technique was also commonly applied to buildings as weatherproofing and, surprisingly, as a fire protectant.

Terms

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email loebcollections@vassar.edu