AUTUMN MOON (Mizuno Toshikata)

N.1 triptych of ukiyo-e woodblock prints
Year: 1885
Condition: good
Size: 72,5 x 36 cm

SOLD

Description

Elegant triptych of woodblock prints entitled “The Autumn Moon Seen from Ishiyama Temple” (石山寺秋之月), made in 1885 by the artist Mizuno Toshikata (水野年方) and inspired by the tradition according to which the famous novelist and poet Murasaki Shikibu (紫式部) began writing “The Tale of Genji” (源氏物語) in the aforementioned temple during a full moon night in 1004.

The work is taken from a series entitled “Snow, Moon and Flowers” (雪月花の内), a metonymy, originating from a poem by the Chinese poet Bai Juyi (白居易), which became popular in the late Edo period (江戸時代) to indicate beautiful sceneries in the nature.

The prints on Japanese washi paper (和紙), produced by the publisher Fukase Kamejiro (深瀬亀次郎) and the carver Koide Tatsumatsu (小出辰松), despite the right signs of aging including some small restorations, are in good general condition.