100 Views of Edo # 11 Deluxe 1st Edition by Ando Hiroshige

Additional Pictures: Artist: Ando Utagawa Hiroshige (1787-1858)

Woodblock Print Title:Kiyomizu Hall and Shinobazu Pond at Ueno, from the series One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (Meisho Edo hyakkei)

1st Publication: April 1856

Size: Oban: 8 5/8" x 12 5/8" (21.9 x 32.2 cm)

Date of this edition: April 1856, 1st Edition

Publisher: Uoya Eikichi

Condition: Trimmed to the margins on the lower, and upper side of the print, partially on the right and left side, affecting the seals. Small stain near the cartouche title.Very good colors and impression.

Notes: Very rare 1st edition. Deluxe edition with Mica in the sky area. Usually, this technique was reserved for good customer or prestigious people, as the technology was fairly new, expensive and difficult to master.

More about this print: Kiyomizu Hall in Ueno Park was founded in 1631 as part of an ambitious plan to establish a great Buddhist temple complex in Edo and to provide spiritual defense from the northeast, the direction from which evil spirits were thought to come.

The hall is celebrated for the cherry blossoms in its vicinity and the view it offers. However, even in Hiroshige's day the actual panorama was less spectacular than is suggested by this print, which exaggerates the width of the veranda extending out from the temple and shows the pine trees as towering giants.

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.