Description
Elegant polychrome woodblock print of the uchiwa-e (団扇絵) type, that is intended for the decoration of a bamboo uchiwa (団扇) fan, made in the second half of the 19th century by the artist Iijima Koga (飯島光峨) and depicting a Manchurian crane (丹頂), also known as Japanese crane.
The uchiwa fan is one of the most popular accessories of Japanese women since the 6th century and, born as an object of daily use, it soon became also a small work of art to be carried as a manifestation of the mood as well as of good taste.
The woodblock print on Japanese washi paper (和紙) is taken from what was supposed to be the catalogue of a shop, as we assume from the binding holes on the right and from the inventory code printed on the bottom left, and despite the right signs of aging is in good general conditions.
