Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858). <em>Sudden Shower Over Shin-Ohashi Bridge and Atake (Ohashi Atake no Yudachi), No. 58 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo</em>, 9th month of 1857. Woodblock print, Sheet: 14 3/16 x 9 1/8 in. (36.1 x 23.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris, 30.1478.58 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 30.1478.58_PS20.jpg)

Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858). Sudden Shower Over Shin-Ohashi Bridge and Atake (Ohashi Atake no Yudachi), No. 58 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 9th month of 1857. Woodblock print, Sheet: 14 3/16 x 9 1/8 in. (36.1 x 23.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris, 30.1478.58 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 30.1478.58_PS20.jpg)

DOWNLOAD

Sudden Shower Over Shin-Ohashi Bridge and Atake (Ohashi Atake no Yudachi), No. 58 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo

Utagawa Hiroshige

Asian Art

One can almost hear the crack of thunder as the roiling black clouds burst into sheets of heavy rain, scattering the huddled shapes on the bridge below. On the blue-gray expanse of the Sumida River, a solitary boatman poles his log raft downstream past the area known as Atake, impervious to the storm. This is a yūdachi—an "evening descent" of the thunder god—a summer rain in which the heavens suddenly darken late in the day, releasing torrents of rain in large drops that then quickly clear. The undisputed masterpiece of the series, this print was accorded the honor of a copy in oil by Vincent van Gogh, now in Amsterdam.

ARTIST Utagawa Hiroshige, Japanese, 1797–1858

MEDIUM Woodblock print

Place Made: Japan

DATES 9th month of 1857

PERIOD Edo Period, Ansei Era

DIMENSIONS Sheet: 14 3/16 x 9 1/8 in. (36.1 x 23.1 cm) Image: 13 1/4 x 8 3/4 in. (33.7 x 22.2 cm) (show scale)

MARKINGS Publisher: Shitaya Uo Ei

SIGNATURE Hiroshige-ga

COLLECTIONS Asian Art

ACCESSION NUMBER 30.1478.58

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 This print is considered the masterpiece of this series and compares in its appeal with another of Hiroshige's most famous landscapes, Shono, in "The Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido," which also depicts escape from a sudden rain. This print, along with the view of the Kameido plum tree (print 30 from the series), were copied in oil by Vincent van Gogh. The rolling black clouds, the torrents of rain -- depicted through an overlay of black and gray lines at different angles -- and the blue-gray of the Sumida River show the intensity of the summer storm. There are six figures on the bridge, attempting to escape from the rain, under hats, mats, and umbrellas and a lone boatman on the river. Looking beyond the Shin-Ohashi, or New Great Bridge, is the Atake of the title, an informal place name for the area shown on the far bank, named after a huge bakufu ship which was moored in front of the shogunal boathouses here from the 1630's until it was dismantled in 1682. An earlier version of this print (showing an additional two log raft along the far shore), is in the Brooklyn Museum collection.

EXHIBITIONS

MUSEUM LOCATION This item is not on view

CAPTION Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858). Sudden Shower Over Shin-Ohashi Bridge and Atake (Ohashi Atake no Yudachi), No. 58 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 9th month of 1857. Woodblock print, Sheet: 14 3/16 x 9 1/8 in. (36.1 x 23.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris, 30.1478.58 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 30.1478.58_PS20.jpg)

IMAGE overall, 30.1478.58_PS20.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2023

"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.

RIGHTS STATEMENT No known copyright restrictions

This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement. You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

RECORD COMPLETENESS

Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.