Konjikido in Snow at Hiraizumi

This print depicts the Konjikido (Golden Hall) of Chusonji Temple in Hiraizumi, Iwate Prefecture, a National Treasure constructed in 1124 under Fujiwara no Kiyohira. The Konjikido is enclosed within a protective wooden outer structure (saya-do), and Hasui's composition likely frames the gilded hall visible through snow-laden timbers or a gate of the temple precinct. Hiraizumi, a site associated with the northern Fujiwara clan and later immortalized by Matsuo Bashô in Oku no Hosomichi, was a subject Hasui visited and depicted at multiple points in his career. Snow accumulating on curved roof tiles and bare branches would have been rendered with careful gradation across multiple woodblocks, with white areas reserved on the washi paper rather than printed. The combination of a culturally significant architectural monument with a winter landscape exemplifies Hasui's approach to meisho-e (famous-place pictures) within the shin-hanga idiom.