Artist: Suzuki Harunobu [鈴木 春信] (Japanese, c. 1725–1770)
Signed: None (attributed to Harunobu)
Publisher: Unknown
Media: Woodblock print (nishiki-e, 錦絵); ink and colour on paper; Horizontal Chūban (中判), 208 × 280 mm
Date: c. 1768–1770
A young couple is shown in an erotic embrace inside a palanquin (norimono, 乗り物), which is situated along a pine-shaded path. The man appears to be a young samurai wearing a green kimono; his sword's hilt and hand guard (tsuba) are visible. The woman’s kimono is lifted, partially covering the couple’s heads. Outside the palanquin stands a second woman dressed in a brown kimono, tying a sash around her hips beneath a green checkered obi. She wears a straw hat with a folding fan tucked into her sash and turns away from the scene—perhaps checking that no one is approaching.
Another copy was sold at Sotheby's in Paris for €3,360 on November 27, 2002 (Lot 24), with a reproduction of the print's detail and a description on p. 39:
Suzuki Harunobu (1725–1770) | Shunga: couple dans un palanquin, vers 1768–1770, non-signé, cachet non identifié, cachets Charles Mitchell, Huguette Berès, format chūban, 20.1 x 28.6 cm | 3,000–4,000 € | Il s’agit probablement de trois voyageurs, l’un d’entre eux debout près du palanquin faisant mine d’ignorer la scène.
Bibliographie: Delay, p. 87.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art (JP1635) holds a closely related print, where the setting shifts to a shoreline, and the woman in the palanquin is alone. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/45071
According to the MET: “The palanquin ... has carried these courtesans to the shore for a spring outing.”
Some time ago, a similar impression was sold by Richard Kruml with the description:
A chuban shunga print showing the occupant of a kago in flagrante with one of the porters, having seized the opportunity of a stop on the journey. Published in the late 1760s. Rare.
Reference: [LIB-3121.2022] Sotheby's: Collection Huguette Berès – Estampes, dessins et livres illustrés japonais / 2 volumes; vol. 1. — Paris: Sotheby's, 2002; Pl. 24, p.39.
Additional Information
| Collection | Japanese prints and drawings |
|---|---|
| Type / Purpose | Woodblock print |
| Period | 18 AD , Edo period [江戸時代] (1603–1868) , Late 18th century |
| Country | Japan |
| Subject | 18th century , Erotica , Japan , Japanese woodblock prints , Love , Palanquin , Sex , Sexual life , Shunga |
| Media/Technique | Ink and color on paper , Woodblock print (nishiki-e) |
| Size | Horizontal chuban |
| Creation / Publishing year | 1768 , 1769 , 1770 |
| Catalogue raisonne | Huguette Berès (Sotheby's) |
| Acquisition year | 2015 |
