Collections: Asian Art: Yoroi Ferry, Koami-cho (Yoroi no Watashi Koami-cho), No. 46 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo

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Yoroi Ferry, Koami-cho (Yoroi no Watashi Koami-cho), No. 46 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo

• Artist: Utagawa Hiroshige (Ando), Japanese, 1797-1858
• Medium: Woodblock print
• Place Made: Japan
• Dates: 10th month of 1857
• Period: Edo Period, Ansei Era
• Dimensions: 14 1/4 x 9 1/4in. (36.2 x 23.5cm) Sheet: 14 3/16 x 9 7/16 in. (36 x 23.9 cm) Image: 13 1/4 x 8 3/4 in. (33.7 x 22.2 cm)
• Markings: Title in cartouche lower left. Censor seals upper right border.
• Signature: Hiroshige-ga
• Collections: Asian Art
• Museum Location: This item is not on view
• Accession Number: 30.1478.46
• Credit Line: Gift of Anna Ferris
• Image: Overall, 30.1478.46_PS1.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2006
Utagawa Hiroshige (Ando) (Japanese, 1797-1858). Yoroi Ferry, Koami-cho (Yoroi no Watashi Koami-cho), No. 46 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 10th month of 1857. Woodblock print, 14 1/4 x 9 1/4in. (36.2 x 23.5cm) Sheet: 14 3/16 x 9 7/16 in. (36 x 23.9 cm) Image: 13 1/4 x 8 3/4 in. (33.7 x 22.2 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris, 30.1478.46 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 30.1478.46_PS1.jpg)
• Catalogue Description: This scene shows the Yoroi Ferry carrying passengers across the Nihonbashi River, standing on the Kayaba-cho side, looking across at the warehouses of Koami-cho, where rice, soy, and oil were stored. Swallows are seen in the summer sky, which is streaked with bright yellow. On the right is a young woman near the ferry landing, wearing a bold patterned dress, representative of the late Edo taste. An oarsman is seen sculling his small "chokibune" in the middle of the river and behind him to the right is a cargo boat filled with boxes marked "tea." The bow of the large ship at the left is one of the cargo ships that supplied Edo. According to legend the Yoroi (Armor) Ferry owes its name to Minamoto Yoshiie, the same medieval warrior who hung his armor on a pine tree (see print 26 of the series). As the legend goes, he was setting out for Chiba when a great storm came up, so he sacrificed his suit of armor to the Dragon King of the sea and offered his helmet in a mound nearby, in the hope of victory against his enemies. Hence the present place name of Kabuto-cho, which today is in the location of the Tokyo Stock Market.