unknown (shin hanga)

ca. 1920-30s

Mt. Fuji and Snow at a Shrine

embellished with karazuri ('blind printing') of the snow in the foreground and a dusting of gofun snowflakes; the plaque on the torii gate reads 'jinja' (shrine), unsigned, ca. 1930s

mitsugiriban tate-e 14 1/2 by 6 3/8 in., 36.8 by 16.1 cm

While reminiscent of the work of Takahashi Hiroaki (Shotei, 1871-1945), this print does not seem to relate directly to any one Shotei print. The subject is similar to a Shotei mitsugiriban published in circa 1939 by Tanaka Shobido with the descriptive title, Snow at a Shinto Shrine, depicting a figure and a child clearing snow at night near a torii gate at an entrance to a shrine. In contrast, while thematically related, this composition manages to incorporate additional details, checking the box, so to speak, of a number of popular motifs within the narrow vertical format. The unknown artist assembled a careful arrangement of a torii gate flanked with stone lanterns at the entrance to a shrine with a tiered pagoda, with two female figures wearing kimono and carrying umbrellas as they plod through the heavy snow falling against a darkening night sky with Mount Fuji seen in the distance.

Reference:
Marc Kahn, The Woodblock Prints of Takahashi Shotei (www.shotei.com), cat. no. M-85 (Snow at a Shinto Shrine)

(inv. no. 10-5756)

price: $950