100 Views of Edo # 59 by Ando Hiroshige

Artist: Ando Utagawa Hiroshige (1787-1858)

Woodblock Prints Title: 100 Views of Edo # 59 - Ryôgoku Bridge and the Great Riverbank

1st Publication: August 1856

Size: 9 x 13-1/4 + Margins as shown

Date of this edition: August 1856

Publisher: Uoya Eikichi

Condition: Near Mint. Slight margin trimmed affecting the seals on the upper section of the print. Amazing colors and condition.

Notes: 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.

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.