Skip Navigation

Shitaya Hirokoji, No. 13 in One Hundred Famous Views of Edo

Utagawa Hiroshige

Asian Art

This print depicts a fascinating array of customs. In the immediate foreground are three samurai, identifiable by their double swords but unusual for their Western pants, a recent import popular among younger samurai. The identical parasols, uneven procession, and diverse dress of the women ahead mark them as a group of merchant-class tourists. They are on their way to view the cherry blossoms hinted at by the rosy-tinged cloud in the distance.

MEDIUM Woodblock print
  • Place Made: Japan
  • DATES 9th month of 1856
    PERIOD Edo Period, Ansei Era
    DIMENSIONS Image: 13 3/8 x 8 5/8 in. (34 x 21.9 cm) Sheet: 14 3/16 x 9 1/4 in. (36 x 23.5 cm)  (show scale)
    SIGNATURE Hiroshige-ga; publisher: Shitaya Uo Ei
    COLLECTIONS Asian Art
    ACCESSION NUMBER 30.1478.13
    CREDIT LINE Gift of Anna Ferris
    PROVENANCE Prior to 1930, provenance not yet documented; by 1930, acquired by Anna Ferris of Summit, NJ; 1930, gift of Anna Ferris to the Brooklyn Museum.
    Provenance FAQ
    CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION Busy street looking down a long row of shops with a detailed depiction of one particular store, in this case, the silk store "Ito Matsuzakaya" and two delivery men bearing large packs with the shop crest. The site today is still occupied by Matsuzakaya, which like Mitsukoshi (pl. 8) has become one of Tokyo's major department stores. The subway stop in front is now called Ueno Hirokoji, and the tradition of a broad pedestrian space continues in contemporary Tokyo. In the immediate foreground there is a group of three samurai, identified by their two swords but unusual in the Western pants they wear; these were a recent import that spread rapidly among younger samurai for their distinctive style and ease of movement. (This series was begun three years after Admiral Perry "opened" Japan.) A large group of women carrying red parasols are probably students at some school of chanting or dancing, on their way to view the cherry blossoms at Kan'eiji, followed by a group of men carrying the appropriate refreshments. The small building just to the right of the head of the procession is a barbershop, where class status was marked above all by hair style. A bank of stylized clouds, comparable to the clouds in the preceding print, hangs over the forested mass of the temple beyond.
    MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view
    CAPTION Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858). Shitaya Hirokoji, No. 13 in One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 9th month of 1856. Woodblock print, Image: 13 3/8 x 8 5/8 in. (34 x 21.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris, 30.1478.13 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 30.1478.13_PS20.jpg)
    IMAGE overall, 30.1478.13_PS20.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2023
    "CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
    RIGHTS STATEMENT No known copyright restrictions
    This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement. You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
    RECORD COMPLETENESS
    Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.