The Kintai Bridge in Suô Province (Suô no kuni Kintaibashi)

Katsushika Hokusai
Japan
1760 – 1849

The Kintai Bridge in Suô Province (Suô no kuni Kintaibashi)
from the series Remarkable Views of Bridges in the various provinces (Shokoku meikyô kiran)
c 1834
woodblock print, ink and colour on paper
Place made
Edo (Tokyo)
Medium
woodblock print, ink and colour on paper
Dimensions
24.4 x 35.6 cm
Credit line
Gift of James and Diana Ramsay 1976
Accession number
768G83
Signature and date
Sealed l.l., pigment "葛飾 北斎" translates to "Katsushika Hokusai". Not dated.
Provenance
Created by Katsushika Hokusai, Edo, c.1834; Robert Sawers collection; purchased by the Art Gallery of South Australia, Adelaide, 1976.
Media category
Print
Collection area
Asian art - Japan
Image credit
Photo: Stewart Adams

  • The elegant arches of the Kintai Bridge, located just outside present-day Hiroshima, span the Nishiki River and complement the approach to Iwakuni Castle, shrouded in clouds. One of the diminutive travellers walking on the arches of the bridge can be distinguished as a samurai by his daishō (large and small swords). Behind him are two attendants and an express foot messenger, with a box attached to a pole over his shoulder.

    This series of bridges was created in 1832, the same year as the final prints of the Thirty-six views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku Sanjūrokkei), which portray Hokusai’s fascination with travel, and is the furthest location depicted in the series.

    Russell Kelty, Curator of Asian Art