Shôtei: Autumn rain at Arakawa river
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Takahashi Shôtei (Hiroaki) (1871-1945)

Sailboats and rafts on the wide Arakawa river on a rainy evening in late autumn or early winter.

Title: Arakawa no Shigure (Rain shower in late autumn or early winter at Arakawa river)

Seal: Shôtei

Publisher: Watanabe, Tokyo

Date: c. 1909-16 ("pre-quake")

Size: Horizontal Ôtanzaku (Mitsugiriban), 16,4 x 37,3 cm (image)

Excellent impression and colours. At bottom left corner some weak diagonal creases, smoothed and hardly visible. Verso in top corners minimal small paper traces from previous attachment. The strikingly even toning of the paper is likely not due to aging, but made by intentional patination of the paper -  quite a common practice at the time. Overall beautiful condition of this extremely rare print.

Verso in bottom margin a stamped "No. 718", Watanabe's catalogue number for this print, the blocks of which were destroyed by the fire following the great Kantô earthquake of 1923. Only very few copies known.

Ill. in: Shimizu, Shôtei (Hiroaki) Takahashi. Folk Museum of Ota City, 2005, p. 19, no. 75 (T718). Shotei.com M-109.

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