Yoroi Ferry at Koami-chō and Yoroi Bridge at Kabuto-chō from the series Famous Places of Tokyo: Past and Present

Home‎ > ‎Artists‎ > ‎Utagawa Hiroshige III (1842–1894)‎ > ‎

Japanese Color Woodblock Print

Yoroi Ferry at Koami-chō and

Yoroi Bridge at Koami-chō

from the series

Famous Places of Tokyo: Past and Present

by Utagawa Hiroshige III, 1884

IHL Cat. #1280

IHL Cat. #1290

About This Print

Both prints are views within Nihonbashi, the most densely populated area of Tokyo. The top print above (IHL Cat. #1280) provides a past, or old (古), view of the Yoroi Ferry, which carried passengers across the Nihonbashi canal to at Kabuto-chō to Koami-chō, Tokyo’s mercantile quarter of Nihonbashi, an area filled with warehouses stocked with rice, soy, and oil. It is matched with a present, or now (今), view on the bottom sheet (IHL Cat. #1290), depicting the Yoroi Bridge, built in 1873, that replaced the Yoroi Ferry. In the present view, a gentlemen in modern Western-style dress can be seen. Interestingly, and confusing to me, is how the Yoroi Bridge, built as a Western-style iron bridge is depicted, showing no modern elements of steel construction.

These past and present views were orginally printed together as one oban-size sheet as shown below and later cut apart. They are two of at least 32 views, contained on 16 uncut oban-size sheets, in the series Famous Places of Tokyo: Past and Present.

uncut print

Waseda University Library 文庫10_08624_0007

古今東京名所: よろひのわたし小阿ミ町・よろひはし兜甼

Kokon Tokyo meisho: Yoroi no Watashi Koami-chō [top] Yoribashi Kabuto-chō [bottom]

The Series: Famous Places of Tokyo: Past and Present

A series of at least sixteen uncut oban-size sheets depicting a past or old (古) view on the top sheet, and present or now (今) view, on the bottom sheet, of a particular area of Tokyo. Many of the views are similar to those found in Hiroshige's One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (Meisho Edo hyakkei).

Print Details

IHL Catalog

#1280, #1290

Title or Description

#1280: Yoroi Ferry at Koami-chō
Yoroi no watashi Koamichō よろひのわたし小阿ミ町
#1290: Yoroi Bridge at Kabuto-chō
Yoribashi Kabuto-chō よろひはし兜甼

Series

Famous Places of Tokyo: Past and The Present (Kokon Tokyo meisho 古今東京名所)

Artist

Utagawa Hiroshige III (1842–1894)

Signature

廣重画 Hiroshige ga (#1280 left; #1290 right)

Seal

no seal

Publication Date

1884 (明治十七; Meiji 17) as printed in the left margin of #1290.

Publisher

seal of the publisher Tsujiokaya Bunsuke, as printed in the left margin of #1290 and reading:
出板人横山丁三丁目二番地辻岡文助
Shuppanjin Yokoyamachō Sanchōme 2-banchi Tsujioka Bunsuke [Marks: pub. ref. 548; seal ref. 25-267]

artist's address and family name, as printed in the left margin of #1289 and reading: 画工 [gakō] followed by address, followed by 安藤徳兵衛 [Andō Tokubei]

Carver

Impression

IHL Cat. #1280 and IHL Cat. #1290 - excellent

Colors

IHL Cat. #1280 and IHL Cat. #1290 - excellent

Condition

IHL Cat. #1280: good - light paper wrinkling due to removal from backing
IHL Cat. #1290: fair - paper wrinkling resulting from removal from backing; vertical separation repaired from verso

Genre

nishiki-e; meisho-e

Miscellaneous

markings in upper right hand corner of each print, indicating whether the view shown is the past , or old (古), view or the present, or now (今), view. Each print is also marked with the number 七, likely indicating that the print is number 7 in the series, although some prints in the series do not carry a number.

Format

chūban yoko-e

H x W Paper

IHL Cat. #1280: 7 1/8 x 9 3/8 in. (18.1 x 23.8 cm)
IHL Cat. #1290: 7 1/8 x 9 3/8 in. (18.1 x 23.8 cm)

H x W Image

IHL Cat. #1280: 6 1/2 x 8 11/16 in. (16.5 x 22.1 cm)
IHL Cat. #1290: 6 1/2 x 8 5/8 in. (16.5 x 21.9 cm)

Literature

Collections This Print

Waseda University Library 文庫10_08624_0007; Postal Museum Japan