Description
Beautiful polychrome woodblock print by the artist Toyohara Kunichika (豊原国周), entitled “The midaidokoro of Ietsuna” (家綱公御台所) and depicting Asa no Miya Akiko (浅宮顕子), buddhist name Kogenin (高巌院), the official wife of Tokugawa Ietsuna (徳川家綱), the eldest son of Tokugawa Iemitsu (徳川家光), who after the disappearance of the latter became shogun when he was only ten years old.
The work, made in 1879 by the publisher Takegawa Seikichi (武川清吉), is taken from the series “The Backyard of Pines and Malvaceae” (葵艸松の裏苑). Remarkable, in the upper right corner, the decoration of the title depicting the triple hollyhock (三葉葵), that is the emblem of the Tokugawa clan (徳川氏).
The print on Japanese washi paper (和紙), despite the proper signs of aging including a small tear in the upper left corner, is in good general condition, thanks also to a relining carried out on the back.
