Utagawa Sadahide — Cherry-blossom triptych | Edo period

Artist: Utagawa Sadahide (歌川貞秀, 1807–1873), signing as Gyokuransai Sadahide ga (玉蘭斎貞秀画) Title: 東錦桜狩 — Azuma Nishiki Sakura-gari ("Eastern Brocade: Cherry-Blossom Viewing") Format: Ōban triptych, three sheets, each ca. [36 × 24 cm] Technique: Nishiki-e (full-colour woodblock print) Date: Late Edo period, ca. 1847–52 (based on the paired censor seals) Signature / seals: Signed Gyokuransai Sadahide ga on each sheet. Two round censor seals. Publisher's mark on the centre sheet. Condition: Fair impression with fair colour throughout. The paper is firm. Minor repairs on the margins. Minor trimming Please refer to the images for full detail! About the print Sadahide was a pupil of Utagawa Kunisada. He worked under the art-name Gyokuransai through the 1840s and 1850s, and after the opening of Yokohama in 1859 he became one of the best-known designers of Yokohama-e and panoramic bird's-eye views. This triptych comes from his earlier Edo period, when figure subjects set in the seasons made up much of his output. The paired censor seals point to the years 1847–52, when two ward officials (nanushi) jointly approved each print before publication. "Azuma nishiki" (Eastern brocade) was the name used for the full-colour prints of Edo, which were famous across Japan and bought as souvenirs of the capital. "Sakura-gari" (literally "cherry hunting") was the older, more literary term for going out to view the blossoms. Spring hanami was among the most popular seasonal subjects in the triptych format.

Estimate:£126.47

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