Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858)
Moon Pine, Ueno (Ueno sannai Tsuki no matsu), from the series One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (Meisho Edo hyakkei), 1857, 8th month
Woodblock print
Vertical oban:
36 x 24.8 cm. (14 ⅛ x 9 ¾ in.)
36 x 24.8 cm. (14 ⅛ x 9 ¾ in.)
Signed: Hiroshige ga
Publisher: Uoya Eikichi
Sealed: aratame (certified) and date seal Snake 8 (1857, 8th month)
Publisher: Uoya Eikichi
Sealed: aratame (certified) and date seal Snake 8 (1857, 8th month)
£ 2,200.00
During the Edo period there was a trend for naming trees that were distinguished by their age or their form. Pine trees, which tend to live long and can grow...
During the Edo period there was a trend for naming trees that were distinguished by their age or their form. Pine trees, which tend to live long and can grow into contorted shapes, were the most common to be given names. The tree which is the main focus of Hiroshige's print here was named the Moon Pine, in part because of its round, moon-like shape, but also because it was believed that one could discern the various phases of the moon by looking at the tree from different angles.
For a similar impression in the collection of The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession no. 11.35819, go to: https://collections.mfa.org/objects/460236
For a similar impression in the collection of The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession no. 11.35819, go to: https://collections.mfa.org/objects/460236