A Temple in Rain Christmas Card

Date:: description
Medium:: Woodblock print
Format:: Oban
Publisher:: Watanabe Shozaburo

Edition:

Published by Watanabe Shozaburo

Source:

Typical Price

Rain scenes are Hasui's second most desirable atmospheric category, carrying a 20–40% premium over comparable clear-weather subjects. Rainy Season, Shinagawa (1931) sold for $4,375 at Christie's Online (2020). The bokashi gradation technique used for rain effects demands superior impressions — well-preserved sky gradations add significantly to value, while faded examples lose much of their impact.

Pre-war lifetime edition (Watanabe seal): $1,500–$5,500
Postwar lifetime edition (J-seal): $600–$2,000
Posthumous/Heisei edition: $250–$700

Description

A Temple in Rain Christmas Card, listed with an unusual "description" date entry in the dataset, depicts a Buddhist or Shinto temple under rainfall — a subject clearly drawn from Hasui's extensive rain-and-temple repertoire but repurposed or formatted as a seasonal greeting card. The Christmas card format is an unusual application of the woodblock print medium, and Hasui occasionally produced such prints for the Western foreign market that provided significant patronage for Watanabe's [shin-hanga](/glossary/shin-hanga) publications. The rain-temple subject would have combined his characteristic atmospheric technique with the quiet seasonal mood appropriate for a winter greeting.