Utagawa Toyokuni I (1769 - 1825)
Wisdom (Chi), from the series Fashionable Five Virtues (Furyu jin-gi-rei-chi-shin), circa 1795
Woodblock print
Signed: 'Toyokuni ga'
Publisher: Izumiya Ichibei (Kansendo)
Censor's seal: 'kiwame' (approved)
Date: circa 1795
Signed: 'Toyokuni ga'
Publisher: Izumiya Ichibei (Kansendo)
Censor's seal: 'kiwame' (approved)
Date: circa 1795
Vertical oban: 38.7 x 25.4 cm. (15 ¼ x 10 in.)
£ 12,000.00
A courtesan wearing a kimono decorated with irises stands beside a screen with a lantern and a kettle behind her. The print is from a set illustrating the ‘The Fashionable...
A courtesan wearing a kimono decorated with irises stands beside a screen with a lantern and a kettle behind her. The print is from a set illustrating the ‘The Fashionable Five Confucian Virtues’, (Furyu Jin-gi-rei-chi-shin), this design illustrating ‘wisdom’, (chi). The 5 virtues are Jin (Benevolence), Gi (Justice), Rei (Decorum), Chi (Wisdom or Intelligence) and Shin (Good faith). Each virtue is represented by a courtesan in a different pose in a brothel.
Another impression of the same print is in the collection of The British Museum, London, museum no. 1909,0618,0.86, go to:
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1909-0618-0-86
Another is also in the collection of The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession no. 21.6937
Another impression of the same print is in the collection of The British Museum, London, museum no. 1909,0618,0.86, go to:
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/A_1909-0618-0-86
Another is also in the collection of The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, accession no. 21.6937