Shiba Benten Pond

Among the multiple documented impressions of Hasui's Shiba Benten Pond, this example likely reflects a distinct printing run with characteristic variation in the density of the sky gradation or the tonal weight of the foliage blocks. The Benten Pond in Shiba Park, with its small Benzaiten island shrine, was an established meisho (famous place) within the Shiba district, lending the subject a layered resonance for viewers familiar with both the Tokugawa-era associations of the surrounding Zojo-ji precincts and the modernizing Tokyo of the Taisho and early Showa periods. Hasui's treatment of still water in enclosed, tree-lined settings consistently exploits the capacity of handmade washi to absorb pigment at varying depths, producing reflections that are luminous rather than sharp-edged.