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Suijin Shrine and Massaki on the Sumida River (Sumidagawa Suijin no Mori Massaki), No. 35 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo

Utagawa Hiroshige

Asian Art

The site depicted here is said to have been the original mouth of the Sumida, Edo's most important river, and the shrine at the lower right, across the river from the Massaki area, is dedicated to the river itself. Notwithstanding the restful beauty of the distant view, our attention is caught by the elaborate blossoms of the double-petaled cherry in the foreground. Such framing on the right, the side from which the Japanese eye tends to enter a composition, is relatively rare in this series and seems reserved for dramatic effect. It is appropriate for this type of flower, a baroque and fragrant late-blooming hybrid cherry rather out of keeping with normal Japanese taste.

MEDIUM Woodblock print
  • Place Made: Japan
  • DATES 8th month of 1856
    PERIOD Edo Period, Ansei Era
    DIMENSIONS Sheet: 14 3/16 x 9 1/4 in. (36 x 23.5 cm) Image: 13 3/8 x 9 in. (34 x 22.8 cm)  (show scale)
    MARKINGS Publisher: Shitaya Uo Ei
    SIGNATURE Hiroshige-ga
    COLLECTIONS Asian Art
    ACCESSION NUMBER 30.1478.35
    CREDIT LINE Gift of Anna Ferris
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION This scene framed by double-petalled cherry blossoms looks down on the Sumida River in the district known as Mukojima. The people on the lower left are walking toward the Hashiba Ferry (see print 37 from the series) and in the distance is a lumber raft and two cargo ships. At the lower right is a shrine, its entrance seen by the lantern-flanked stone "torii." This is "Suijin no Mori," the "grove of the Water God," a shrine dedicated to the Sumida River. In the center is Mount Tsukuba.
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
    CAPTION Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797-1858). Suijin Shrine and Massaki on the Sumida River (Sumidagawa Suijin no Mori Massaki), No. 35 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 8th month of 1856. Woodblock print, Sheet: 14 3/16 x 9 1/4 in. (36 x 23.5 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris, 30.1478.35 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 30.1478.35_PS20.jpg)
    IMAGE overall, 30.1478.35_PS20.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2023
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