Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III). View of Ryōgoku Bridge in Summer, from the series 'Beauties and the Five Great Bridges of Edo' / Fan print, 1843.

Artist: Utagawa Kunisada [歌川国貞] (Japanese, 1786–1865)
Signed: 香蝶楼国貞画 (Kōchōrō Kunisada ga)
Publisher: Kojimaya Jūbei [小嶋屋重兵衛] (Japanese, active c. 1797–1869); seal: [十] (Tō), Marks 06-014 | 264a
Censor Seal: Hama; date range: 8/1843 – 7/1846 (Tenpō 14 – Kōka 3)
Media: Fan print (uchiwa-e); woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and colour on paper; 228 × 285 mm
Title: View of Ryōgoku Bridge in Summer (Ryōgokubashi natsu no kei, 両国橋夏の景)
Series: Beauties and the Five Great Bridges of Edo (Hana no Edo go-ōhashi, 花の江戸五大橋)

Description:
Half-length portrait of a young woman in summer attire, three-quarter view, facing left. She leans on the bridge railing with her left hand, while in her right hand she holds a small drum (kotsuzumi, 小鼓), suspended by a cord and adorned with red tassel-like fittings. Her kimono is decorated with blue and grey roundels enclosing floral motifs and features a red collar with a butterfly motif. Tucked into her obi at the back is a rigid fan (uchiwa, 団扇) signed 文一写 (Fumikazu sha), decorated with a swallow and a wind chime (furin, 風鈴) bearing a pink paper slip. Her hair is styled with a golden kanzashi (簪) featuring a toad, a red ribbon with asanoha (麻の葉) motif, and a green comb with carp and seaweed. In the background, the Ryōgoku Bridge (両国橋) spans the Sumida River, setting the scene for the annual summer fireworks (hanabi, 花火), one of Edo’s most celebrated seasonal events. The river is animated with pleasure boats (yakatabune, 屋形船) beneath a sky lit by red fireworks.

At right, a boat displays red lanterns marked 川 and 一 (Kawaichi, the best on the river), and a yellow sign reading 川一丸 (Kawaichi-maru) — the name of a well-known pleasure boat; see the pentaptych by Chōbunsai Eishi (Japanese, 1756–1829) at MFA Boston 11.14055, 11.14160-14163.

Ryōgokubashi (両国橋), the bridge depicted here, was one of Edo’s most famous sites for summer festivities, especially the licensed fireworks displays held annually during the Sumidagawa Fireworks Festival (Sumidagawa hanabi taikai), typically around the fifth day of the fifth lunar month or mid-summer. This print forms part of the series Hana no Edo go-ōhashi (花の江戸五大橋), depicting the “Five Great Bridges of Edo,” which also included Nihonbashi, Shin-Ōhashi, Azumabashi, and Eitaibashi.

Although the Hama censor seal was used between 8/1843 and 7/1846, Kunisada began signing as Toyokuni from early 1844. Since this print bears the signature Kōchōrō Kunisada, it must date to 1843 (Tenpō 14).

Here are the Five Great Bridges of Edo:

1. Ryōgokubashi (両国橋) – Spanning the Sumida River, connecting Honjo and Nihonbashi districts.

2. Nihonbashi (日本橋) – The “Bridge of Japan,” marking the starting point of the five Edo-period highways (gokaidō).

3. Shin-Ōhashi (新大橋)
   – “New Great Bridge” over the Sumida River.
   – Frequent subject in ukiyo-e, notably in Hiroshige’s prints (e.g., “Sudden Shower over Shin-Ōhashi”).

4. Azumabashi (吾妻橋) – “Eastern Bridge,” just north of Ryōgokubashi; also known poetically or descriptively as Ōkawabashi (大川橋), “Bridge over the Great River (Ōkawa, i.e., the Sumida River),”

5. Eitai-bashi (永代橋) – “Eternal Generation Bridge,” originally built in 1698.

Fragment: View of the Ōkawa Bridge in Winter (Ōkawabashi fuyu no kei, 大川橋 冬の景)	New Great Bridge in Spring (Shin-Ōhashi haru no kei, 新大橋 春の景)

Provenance:

Drouot, Audap & Associés, Paris; June 12, 2025; Lot 46; René Scholten (Dutch, 1943 – 2001)

Special thanks to Horst Graebner of the Kunisada Project.