Chinese Verses on Itako (Itako zekku shu)
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Format:
- Oban
- Source:
- Art Institute of Chicago
Typical Price
- Later reprint or reproduction (20th-century): $50–$300
- Good later impression (Edo-period): $1,000–$5,000
- Good early impression (vivid color, legible detail): $5,000–$20,000
- Fine early impression (exceptional color and condition): $20,000–$60,000
Hokusai's genre scenes, bijin-ga (beautiful women), and miscellaneous subjects represent the breadth of his career across more than seven decades. The market for non-landscape Hokusai prints has strengthened as collectors seek beyond the most famous designs.
Description
The Itako zekku shu illustrates a sequence of Chinese-style quatrains set in and around the Itako region of Hitachi Province, a marshy area known for its waterways and the blind female shamans (itako) who gave the place its name. The woodblock-printed text and images blend Japanese literary culture with continental poetic form, a hybrid mode Hokusai pursued across several illustrated publications.
More Prints by Katsushika Hokusai
The Fishermen of Katase Hauling in Their Nets: The Purple Shell (Murasakigai)
1821
Color woodblock print with metallic pigments; surimono shikishiban
Burdock Root (Kurama gobo), from the series "A Selection of Horses (Uma-zukushi)"
1822
Color woodblock print; shikishiban, surimono
Horse Shells (Umagai), from the series "A Selection of Horses (Uma-zukushi)"
1822
Color woodblock print; shikishiban, surimono
Orange Orchids, from an untitled series of flowers
c. 1832
Color woodblock print; oban
More Landscapes Prints
Lake Kugushi in Wakasa Province (Wakasa Kugushiko), from the series Souvenirs of Travel I (Tabi miyage dai isshu)"
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Autumn Maple Leaves at Takao, from the album Eight Views of Kyoto (Kyôto hakkei)
Woodblock print
The Beach at Kaiganji in Sanuki Province (Sanuki Kaiganji no hama), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan II, Kansai Edition (Nihon fukei shu II Kansai hen)"
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
Tea Kettle, section of a sheet from the series "Mirror of Stone Rubbings of Views of the Provinces" (Kohon meihitsu ishizuri kagami)
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
Chinese Verses on Itako (Itako zekku shu) was created by Katsushika Hokusai (葛飾北斎).
Chinese Verses on Itako (Itako zekku shu) depicts landscapes, rivers & lakes, and calligraphy.