Comments - Great depiction of a beauty stealing the sacred jewel from the Dragon King at his palace beneath the sea. The woman is shown at bottom center waving a sword as a fierce dragon chases her and men on a boat at left try to pull her in with ropes. At upper right, the Dragon King scowls angrily, his head topped with a miniature dragon. An intriguing illustration from this famous tale. Printed on tan paper, creased, and darkened at the edges to give it an aged appearance.

A Rare, Early 20th Century Series - This beautiful series of reprinted masterwork designs was published by the boutique Tokyo publisher Daiichi Shobo in 1929 (Showa 4). The series was titled, "A Collection of Famous Ukiyo-e Prints." The set was a small release, and prints from the series are rarely seen in the market. Note the beautiful printing, fine detail, and the colors that carefully replicate the originals. An early hand made paper was used for printing the series. The prints were sold with identification information from the publisher and are sealed with the red seal of Daiichi Shobo. See the photos below for the publisher’s labels and an example of a red seal.

Artist - Sugimura Jihei (circa 1681 - 1703)

Image Size - 12 1/4" x 18 1/8"

Condition - This print with excellent color and detail as shown. Slight toning, a couple of light creases, red seal at lower left. Please see photos for details. Good overall.