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.

Miniature Woodblock Prints - Handsome miniature woodblock from the archive of the Uchida Art Company of Kyoto. These terrific little prints feature traditional woodblock subjects, ranging from landscapes and nature scenes to beautiful women. Some of these prints are original 20th century designs, while others are diminutive reprints of classic ukiyo-e works by artists such as Hiroshige. Many miniature prints were created as souvenirs or used as greeting or gift cards, while others were intended to promote the work of contemporary artists. Most of these prints are incredibly detailed, demonstrating amazing carving and printing skills, and show the same attention to detail as full size works. These small treasures are fun to collect and display, and also make fantastic gifts.

Artist - Hiroshige (1797 - 1858)

Image Size - 5 3/8" x 3 1/2" + margins as shown

Condition - Excellent overall with no issues to report.