Comment - Handsome view of Myôken "Hall" ("do") at Yanagishima. An arched wooden bridge leads to the temple complex, where visitors stroll about the grounds. The building in the center is the restaurant Hashimoto, while the edge of the temple can be seen at left. Three Edo-kites ("Edo-tako", "江戸凧") with their long tail ropes fluttering high above the treetops in the distance, and a boatman steers his vessel along the blue canal in the foreground. Nicely detailed and colored with fine bokashi shading.

The Myôken-do is located on the grounds of Hossho-ji Temple. The correct descriptor of the temple is "Yanagishima Myokensan Hossho-ji ". Hossho-ji Temple was founded in 1492. The Myoken-do (hall) enshrines the Myokendaibosatsu, which is a deification of the North Star. The star was worshipped by the people of Edo, including Katsushika HOKUSAI, as a Buddhist saint which protected the country, prevented disaster and brought about long life. The Kaiseki cuisine restaurant "Hashimoto" and other restaurants were located on the northern side of Hossho-ji Temple, and was bustling with many people visiting by ship as well. Mentioning the temple restaurant in the focus of the woodblock, is a usual kind of ancient "product placement".

The title of each individual print is in the scroll cartouche to the left of the vertical rectangular series title cartouche; the number of each print is on the rolled up edge of the scroll.

The series dates from close to the start of HIROSHIGE II's career, when he was about thirty-four years old. At this point, he had just started using the name 'Hiroshige', since his master HIROSHIGE I had just died (in 1858), and HIROSHIGE II had taken over the "gō" name "HIROSHIGE"; the prints in this series are therfore signed "HIROSHIGE ga".


Series - The print is No. 23 of the series: "48 Famous Views of Edo"  (江戸名所四十八景, Edo meisho yonjûhakkei) with the red series title cassette rupper right


Artist - see Biography


Signature -  Hiroshige-ga (広重画) (as HIROSHIGE-II) at lower left, red cassette


Publisher - Tsutaya Kichizô (蔦屋吉蔵) (Kôeidô 紅栄堂 publishing house)


Image Size -   22.2 x 16.2cm ( 8 3/4" x 6 3/8") + margins as shown)


Condition - Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper, single sheet, vertical ôban, Tate-e (portrait)