Pictures of Famous Places on the Fifty-three Stations (Vertical Tokaido) - Hiroshige's fantastic vertical Tokaido series was done in 1855 and represents a further evolution of his landscape design style, including some of his most modern designs. One of the striking features of this beautiful series was the vertical format, since the more common format for the landscape print was the horizontal. This unique approach allowed Hiroshige to experiment with the foreground and background contrasts that are typical of his work and seen in some of his other vertical landscape series. The concept for the vertical Tokaido grew out of the incredible popularity of the Hoeido Tokaido (his first Tokaido series). Hiroshige wanted to expand on the theme, as the public was very interested in his fascinating images of life and travels along the most important thoroughfare in Japan- the road from Edo to Kyoto. From the urban center of Edo, where the journey began, to the beautiful rural landscape of the provinces more far away, the series is a set of breathtaking illustrations of Edo period Japan.

Shops Selling Tororo Soup, a Famous Product of Mariko - Terrific scene of travelers stopping to enjoy hot bowls of tororo soup at shops lining the road in Mariko. At left a man relaxing on a bench smiles happily as he lifts his bowl to his chin. The store fronts are hung with many signs and banners, along with blue and white cloth curtains. A large green hill looms in the distance, dotted with pine trees. Great detail in this handsome design.

Artist - Hiroshige (1797 - 1858)

Image Size - 13 1/2" x 8 3/4" + margins as shown

Condition - With excellent color and detail as shown. Small loss at bottom left corner, slight thinning along lower left edge, repaired. Slight rubbing at left edge, a few faint creases. Please see photos for details. Good overall.