Procession Past the Cherry Trees at Nakano-chō in the Yoshiwara, from the series Famous Places in Edo

Procession Past the Cherry Trees at Nakano-chō in the Yoshiwara, from the series Famous Places in Edo

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Not currently on view

Utagawa Hiroshige

The Yoshiwara was Edo’s officially sanctioned and regulated brothel district. In this scene, high-ranking courtesans wearing elaborate clothes parade through a Yoshiwara street during cherry blossom season. The women are assisted by men who carry umbrellas and followed by kamuro, small girls who are their attendants and trainees. Though Hiroshige depicted these women in a state of luxury, they were commercialized sex workers, bound by contract to licensed brothels and trained from a young age to please and entertain patrons.
Artist
Utagawa Hiroshige
(Japanese, 1797 - 1858)
Title
Procession Past the Cherry Trees at Nakano-chō in the Yoshiwara, from the series Famous Places in Edo
Date
ca. 1840-1858
Medium
Color woodcut
Dimensions
9 13/16 x 13 13/16 in. Overall
Credit
John H. Van Vleck Endowment Fund purchase
Accession No.
1997.39
Classification
Prints
Geography
Japan

Related

  • Schlombs, Adele. "Hiroshige: 1797-1858." Koln, Germany: Taschen, 2007. p. 25

  • Floating World: Japanese Prints from the Van Vleck Collection, The: Elvehjem Museum of Art, 4/21/2001–6/17/2001
  • Splendors of Edo: Japanese Prints, 1750-1930: Elvehjem Museum of Art, 8/7/1999–10/10/1999

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