Hanga
Mirage at Kuwana (Kuwana shinkirô), from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi by Kawanabe Kyosai — Japanese Woodblock print

Mirage at Kuwana (Kuwana shinkirô), from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi

by Kawanabe Kyosai

Medium:
Woodblock print
Image courtesy of
Museum of Fine Arts Boston

Description

A second impression of Kyosai's Kuwana shinkirō design from the Tōkaidō meisho no uchi series, this print records the atmospheric mirage phenomenon that made Kuwana one of the most visually distinctive stations on the highway. The shinkirō — a superior mirage caused by temperature inversions above Ise Bay — was sufficiently famous to appear in travel literature and numerous meisho-e by artists of multiple schools. Kyosai's interpretation reflects his training in both the Kanō and ukiyo-e traditions, likely combining a broad, flat water expanse with floating, distorted forms above the horizon line. Variation between impressions in such a series can reveal differences in pigment application, particularly in sky and water gradations where bokashi printing demanded precise registration and consistent ink saturation across the edition.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Mirage at Kuwana (Kuwana shinkirô), from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi was created by Kawanabe Kyosai (河鍋暁斎).

Yes — Mirage at Kuwana (Kuwana shinkirô), from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi is part of the Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road series by Kawanabe Kyosai.

Mirage at Kuwana (Kuwana shinkirô), from the series Scenes of Famous Places along the Tôkaidô Road (Tôkaidô meisho fûkei), also known as the Processional Tôkaidô (Gyôretsu Tôkaidô), here called Tôkaidô meisho no uchi depicts transportation, tōkaidō, and travel scenes.