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.

Yajiro Mistakes Kitahachi for a Fox and Beats Him on the Nawate Road near Akasaka, 1855 - Humorous scene from Hiroshige's famous Vertical Tokaido series featuring two characters from a popular story. The novel "Tokaidochu Hizakurige" or "Shank's Mare Tokaido," tells the comic adventures of two commoners from the city, Yajirobei and Kitahachi, as they travel along the famed Tokaido Road in the early 19th century. They travel by shank's mare or on foot, which was less expensive than riding horses. Here, Yaji mistakes his friend Kita for a fox on the dark road, and starts beating him with his walking stick, to the astonishment of a fellow traveler. A charming, amusing image with a wonderful atmospheric setting. This print comes with an original paper label from M. Nakazawa of Tokyo, who had a shop across from the Imperial Hotel until his death around 1987.

Artist - Hiroshige (1797 - 1858)

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

Condition - This print with excellent detail as shown. Stitching holes at side, repaired. Slight toning and soiling at edges, a few light creases and marks. Please see photos for details.