Ryogoku Bridge and the Great Riverbank, No 59 from One Hundred Views of Edo

Hiroshige described Ryōgoku Bridge as "the liveliest place in the Eastern Capital, with side-shows, theaters, story-tellers, and summer fireworks; day and night, the amusements never cease." Despite the festivities, the artist offers a peaceful, almost stylized, depiction of the place, with only a modest sense of its celebrated bustle. On the river is an assortment of cargo and passenger boats. Below is a row of riverside tea stalls where one could relax, much as in a modern Tokyo coffee shop.