Starlit Night, Miyajima

One of several distinct compositions Hasui made of Miyajima's famous torii gate at night, this woodblock print records the Itsukushima Shrine precinct under a starlit sky. Miyajima's scenery drew Hasui on multiple visits over his career, and surviving variants document how he refined his approach to nocturnal seascape—adjusting the horizon line, the distribution of stars, and the reflective quality of the tidal flats. Printed on dampened washi using multiple carved keyblocks and color blocks, the composition achieves tonal depth through layered applications of indigo and black pigment, with the torii's silhouette providing a strong vertical anchor against the horizontal plane of water. The multiple versions bearing similar titles reflect both Hasui's sustained engagement with this subject and the commercial practice of reprinting popular designs across different publishing periods, sometimes with adjustments to color or composition.