Cotton-Goods Lane, Odenma-cho, No. 7 in One Hundred Famous Views of Edo
Utagawa Hiroshige
Asian Art
The quietness of the street tells us it is late night or early morning. We are in the heart of the city in the sector popularly known as Momendana ("cotton shops"). Scholars have surmised that the two geisha are returning home after an evening out, their slight disarray and sense of tipsiness enhanced by the concern in the attendant's arched eyebrow. Nearby, behind the lifted cloth curtain, two merchants sit among piles of cotton fabric, closing up their business.
MEDIUM
Woodblock print
DATES
4th month of 1858
PERIOD
Edo Period, Ansei Era
DIMENSIONS
Image: 13 3/8 x 9 in. (34 x 22.9 cm)
Sheet: 14 1/8 x 9 1/4 in. (35.9 x 23.5 cm) (show scale)
MARKINGS
Publisher: Shitaya Uo Ei
SIGNATURE
Hiroshige-ga
COLLECTIONS
Asian Art
ACCESSION NUMBER
30.1478.7
CREDIT LINE
Gift of Anna Ferris
PROVENANCE
Prior to 1930, provenance not yet documented; by 1930, acquired by Anna Ferris of Summit, NJ; 1930, gift of Anna Ferris to the Brooklyn Museum.
Provenance FAQ
CATALOGUE DESCRIPTION
It is evening and two Geisha and their young attendant (a Kabura or Kamuro) walk along the long stretch of cotton cloth and dry goods shops in Odenma-cho, popularly known as "Momendana" ("cotton shops"), in the heart of the city. Today it still is the cloth and cotton district of Tokyo. Beyond the shop curtain (Noren) of the Tamuraya store (center right) two merchants sit among piles of cotton fabric, probably tallying up the day's profits. The two Geisha in matched ensemble, returning from an evening providing samisen entertainment, perhaps at a wealthy wholesaler's home nearby. There is a disarray in their dress possibly hinting of the drink they may have shared with their customers. The attendant or servant who follows just behind has an arched eyebrow, perhaps conveying a sense of concern over her mistresses' condition. The architecture is typical is Odenma-cho and unusual for wealthy Edo merchants, since it enclosed a row of several different shops under a single roof - a house form normally reserved for backstreet tenements. In this print, the alternating names and crests identify three separate establishments: the Tabataya to the right, Masuya in the center and Shimaya in the distance. The three enclosures on the roof of the building are barrels to collect rain water to be used in case of fire.
EXHIBITIONS
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is not on view
CAPTION
Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858). Cotton-Goods Lane, Odenma-cho, No. 7 in One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 4th month of 1858. Woodblock print, Image: 13 3/8 x 9 in. (34 x 22.9 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris, 30.1478.7 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 30.1478.7_PS20.jpg)
IMAGE
overall, 30.1478.7_PS20.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2023
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