Souvenirs of Travel, Second Series: Takamatsu Castle in Sanuki (Tabi miyage dainishu: Tabi Miyage Dai Nishu: Sanuki no Takamatsujo)

Takamatsu Castle (Tamamo Castle) in Kagawa Prefecture, historically Sanuki province, is one of three Japanese castles built directly on the sea coast, its stone ramparts extending to the shore of the Seto Inland Sea. Hasui's composition likely renders the castle's white-plastered turrets and stone walls from the water or outer moat, emphasizing their reflection in still water or the expanse of sea behind them. The proximity of architecture to open water gave Hasui the opportunity to balance constructed forms against sky and reflective surface in the manner characteristic of his meisho-e prints. Takamatsu Castle was partially demolished following the Meiji Restoration, and Hasui's print documents its reduced but still substantial presence in the early Taisho period. The Tabi miyage dainishu series captures regional castle towns as part of a broader documentation of Japanese provincial landscape and heritage.