Antique Letter Written by Iseki Naosuke

Additional Pictures:



Artist: Iseki Naosuke

Woodblock Print Title: Antique Letter

1st Publication: June 1829

Size: 8 5/8" x 19" (22 x 48.3 cm)

Date of this edition: June 1829

Publisher: Hand drawn letter

Condition: A few losses on the edges, else very fine.

Notes: The inscriptions on the sheet of paper are occasional poems and haiku citations by members of a friendly Japanese company of literati on ageing. The first (right hand side) one is a short poem from the noted Chinese poet Zhang Jiuling (678-740) titled "Seeing the white hair in the mirror" :
宿昔青雲志　-　In the past I saw a dream
磋跎白髪年 - My gray hair increased before I knew
誰知明鏡裏 - I see my figure in mirror
形影白相憐 - All my wrinkles need to be pitied
The 3rd haiku:
葛水又見る影もなき翁かな (Kassui mata miru kage mo naki okina ka na)
Chilled yuzu-water and the miserable old man.

Colophon on the left side with the sketch of an old man:
文政十二年巳丑六月
12th Year of Bunsei era, Year of Earth-Buffalo (1829) June
復吉刷写井関直助　-　Drew by Iseki Naosuke, Fukukichi
所持之軸地　-　On the owner's scroll paper
十八歳　- 18 years of age (reverse reading 80 )

Letter from the former collection of Richard Lane.

Pictures: Pictures are taken outdoor, in the shade, to reflect true colors, without any enhancements of any kind. The last picture is taken indoor, with a light behind the print, to reveal the exact paper grain, holes if any, or other possible flaws.