Object data
nishikie, with metallic pigments
height 137 mm × width 184 mm
Ryûryûkyo Shinsai
A Shrine Visit
Japan, Japan, Japan, Japan, 1809
Provenance
…; purchased from the dealer Kunsthandel Huys den Esch, Dodewaard, by J.H.W. Goslings (1943-2011), Epse, near Deventer, 1988;1 by whom donated to the museum, 1991
Object number: RP-P-1991-636
Credit line: Gift of J.H.W. Goslings, Epse
Copyright: Public domain
Context
The Shijimigai is Number 34 in Oeda Ryuho's A Series of Shells as Brocade of the Coast, Kaitsukushi ura no nishiki, of 1749.
For general notes on the series, see RP-P-1991-561.
The artist
Ryuryukyo Shinsai (n.d., but often given as 1764?-1820; the latter date is definitely incorrect as his last known designs were issued in 1825) is said to have first been follower of Tawaraya Sori, and later of Katsushika Hokusai, who gave him the art-name Shinsai in 1800. His personal name was Masayuki. He was one of the most prolific designers of surimono in the early 19th century and thoroughly explored the possibilities of issuing works in titled series.
Entry
Two women and a boy on their way to visit a shrine at New Year.
One of the women holds a bamboo pole from which hang two bundles of presents, the boy carrying the other end on his shoulder. It is quite possible that one of these bundles is a straw basket containing clams, shijimigai.
The Fresh-water Clam, Shijimigai (Family of the Corbiculidae), from the series A Matching Game of Poems, Kasen awase.
It can be inferred from the poetry that the women are visiting the Kameido Shrine on the eastern bank of Sumida River, an area famous for its clams served at the restaurants nearby.
Three poems by Momotei Kakihito, Narabe Kazunari and Danjuro [Utei] Enba [1743-1822, also known as Karasutei Enba and Momokuri Sanjin, a famous gesaku writer who also edited some kyokabon in 1807 and 1811].2
The poem by Kakihito refers to various indications of the New Year, such as the plum with a sacred fence around it at Kameido and the famous clams. Enba also makes the connection with Kameido, its famous plum tree and the clams, while Kazunari introduces different associations, speaking of beautiful women making their first visit to a shrine on the Day of the Hare, and eating clams at the nearby Narihira Bridge.
Issued by the Yomogawa
Unsigned
Literature
M. Forrer, Surimono in the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, Leiden 2013, no. 163a
Citation
M. Forrer, 2013, 'Ryûryûkyo Shinsai, A Shrine Visit, Japan, 1809', in Surimono from the Goslings Collection in the Rijksmuseum, online coll. cat. Amsterdam: hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.422469
(accessed 15 November 2024 09:53:28).