100 Views of Edo # 117 by Ando Hiroshige

Additional Pictures: Artist: Ando Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858)

Woodblock Print Title: Hilltop View, Yushima Tenjin Shrine (Yushima Tenjin sakaue tenbô), from the series One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (Meisho Edo hyakkei)

1st Publication: April 1856

Size: Vertical oban; 35.8 x 24.5 cm (14 1/8 x 9 5/8 in.)

Date of this edition: 1856

Publisher: Uoya Eikichi

Condition: Left and right margin trimmed, affecting the left seal, soiling.

More about this print: This view is to the northeast from the precincts of Yushima Tenjin Shrine, looking out over the Shinobazu Pond. The main sanctuary of the shrine is off to the left. Pictured is a side approach that could be reached by the two different stone stairways shown here, either the one on the lower right or the one by which the two figures in the center are ascending.

Yushima Tenjin was one of the oldest shrines in Edo and was dedicated to Sugawara Michizane, the patron saint of learning and the arts. It is still devoutly patronized by rich and poor alike. Like many favorite shrines and temples, it served as a major center of recreation in Hiroshige's day.

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.