Hiroshige’s Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido - In 1832, Hiroshige first traveled from his home in Edo (Tokyo) to Kyoto along the Tokaido road. The journey was an eye opening and life changing experience for him. As an urban man of Edo he had experienced life mainly in the capital. He immediately returned to Edo after the trip and began his masterwork woodblock series from the sketches he had made on his journey. Hiroshige's Tokaido prints are an opportunity to be transported back in time to see this world as Hiroshige did in the shadow of the Tokugawa Shogunate.

Drying Strips of Gourd - Interesting view of the village of Minakuchi, a small stop on the Tokaido Road following the mountainous Tsuchiyama region. In the foreground, three women are at work preparing kampyo (dried slices of gourd) to sell to travelers, cutting thin strips and hanging them to dry. At right, another woman drapes gourd strips along a section of bamboo fence in front of the thatched roofed houses of the village. Distant mountains appear in soft blue silhouette. Attractively colored and shaded.

Artist - Hiroshige (1797 - 1858)

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

Condition - This print with excellent color and detail as shown. Faint vertical centerfold. Stitching holes at right edge from previous binding, thinning at left edge, a few small holes, repaired. Faint toning and spotting, slight soiling and creasing, slight rubbing at edges. Please see photos for details. Good overall.