Sumiyoshi Shrine- Tsukuda — 佃住吉神社

This print depicts the Sumiyoshi Shrine on Tsukuda, a small artificial island in the Sumida River estuary that was home to a community of fishermen relocated from Settsu Province during the Edo period. The Sumiyoshi deity—a triad of kami associated with seafaring and safe passage—was an appropriate protector for this working waterfront settlement. Hasui's composition presents the shrine's wooden structures and stone lanterns within the low-lying island's context, likely with the water of the bay visible beyond and fishing vessels or wooden pilings anchoring the foreground. The Tsukuda subject appealed to Hasui as a remnant of old Edo within the rapidly modernizing fabric of Tokyo. Printed on dampened washi in the shin-hanga manner, the color blocks would have captured the weathered grey of shrine timbers alongside the variable blues and greys of the bay water, with subtle bokashi graduation distinguishing sky from water at the horizon.