Dam on the Otonashi River at Oji, No. 19 in One Hundred Famous Views of Edo
Utagawa Hiroshige
Asian Art
This dam was built in 1657 to control the stretch of the Shakujii River known as the Otonashi and to divert part of the flow into irrigation canals leading through fertile rice paddies. This stretch of the river is one of several place names in the Ōji area that were borrowed from the Kumano region to the west of Edo in the Kii Peninsula, in deference to the dedication of Ōji Gongen Shrine to the gods of Kumano. Ōji Gongen Shrine still stands on the bluff across the Otonashi River from Asukayama, or just to the right of the point where Hiroshige has placed us in this view.
MEDIUM
Woodblock print
DATES
2nd month of 1857
PERIOD
Edo Period, Ansei Era
DIMENSIONS
Image: 13 15/16 x 8 15/16 in. (35.4 x 22.7 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
30.1478.19
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
Cherry blossom scene showing people swimming in the Otonashi River below the falls. This man-made "Great Waterfall" has been greatly exaggerated in height by the artist. Above, the Kinrinji Temple, where visitors rest inside a pavilion, today has been reduced to two small lots on the sites of former subtemples. By the 1960's the Otonashi River had been reduced to a concrete channel, but in 1985 a three year construction plan was begun to revive and beautify the 100 meter length of the river seen in this view and will be filled with rocks, bounded by strolling paths, pavilions and cherry trees.
EXHIBITIONS
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is not on view
CAPTION
Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858). Dam on the Otonashi River at Oji, No. 19 in One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 2nd month of 1857. Woodblock print, Image: 13 15/16 x 8 15/16 in. (35.4 x 22.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris, 30.1478.19 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 30.1478.19_PS20.jpg)
IMAGE
overall, 30.1478.19_PS20.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2023
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RIGHTS STATEMENT
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