Eisen Keisai: Sômen Waterfall (Sômen no taki) (Sold)

Artist: Eisen Keisai
Title: Sômen Waterfall (Sômen no taki)
Series: From the Famous Places of the Nikkô Mountains (Nikko-san meisho no uchi)
Date: Mid 1840s

Two travellers pause to smoke a pipe and enjoy the view of Sômen Waterfall, whose name suggest a type of Japanese spaghetti. A stone image of Jizô, the “protector of people on the road” gazes down benevolently from the right and a flowering cherry tree overhangs from the cliff to the left. One of five known designs from this series, considered Eisen’s best landscape designs. Forrer writes that “the utsusu in the artist’s signature suggests that the waterfalls were drawn from nature rather than being copied after another source.”

Condition: Excellent impression and color; very good condition. Bottom margin trimmed, and barely discernible center fold; marks in upper margin.
Dimensions: ôban
Publisher: Yamamoto Heikichi
Literature: See “The Baur Collection” Vol I by Matthi Forrer, plate G166. (Geneva, 1994)
Seal: Censor’s seal: Watanabe Jiemon and artist’s seals “Ei” and “Sen”
Signature: Keisai Eisen utsusu

SKU: EIS027