Yoshitoshi 芳年: Mount Ashigara Moon –Yoshimitsu 足柄山月 義光

Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-1892) 芳年
Title: Mount Ashigara Moon –Yoshimitsu 足柄山月 義光
Series: One Hundred Aspects of the Moon 月百姿
Date: 1889

Minamoto no Yoshimitsu (1056-1127) has stopped at Mount Ahigara to teach his shô (flute) teacher’s son Tokiakia a beautiful old tune given to him by the late master. He sits on a  platform on a hillock that echoes the volcanic Mount Ashigara seen in the distance. Tokiaki is known to be just to the left of Yoshimitsu, but Yoshitoshi has chosen to let the viewer imagine his presence. This is an extremely early impression, with beautiful embossing (blindprinting) on the white title cartouche and woodgrain visible in the hill. The unique nature of Yoshimitsu’s robe is due to the application of oxidizing orange/grey lead pigment.

Condition: Excellent impression, color and condition. Unbacked.
Dimensions: ôban 35.6 x 24 cm
Publisher: Akiyama Buemon
Literature: John Stevenson, Yoshitoshi’s One Hundred Aspects of the Moon (San Francisco: San Francisco Graphic Society, 1992), number 70. See British Museum, Portland Art Museum.
Seal: Taiso
Signature: Yoshitoshi

SKU: YOT836