The Imperial Procession Bridge at Kumamoto Castle (Kumamoto-jô Miyukibashi), from the series Selected Views of Japan (Nihon fûkei senshû)

Kawase Hasui's view of the Imperial Procession Bridge at Kumamoto Castle (Kumamoto-jō Miyukibashi), published in the series Selected Views of Japan (Nihon fūkei senshū), depicts a formal ceremonial bridge within the precincts of one of Japan's most architecturally ambitious castle complexes. Kumamoto Castle, constructed in the early seventeenth century under the daimyo Katō Kiyomasa, is distinguished by its dramatically curved ishigaki stone walls and its multiple turrets. The Miyukibashi—bridge of the imperial procession—was associated with formal entries and ceremonial passage within the outer grounds. Hasui's composition likely positions the bridge as a horizontal element spanning a moat, with the castle's stone walls or a turret visible in the middle distance beyond. The Selected Views series, published by Watanabe Shōzaburō, extended Hasui's documentary program to lesser-visited sites throughout Japan. Kumamoto's warmer southern light would be reflected in the print's palette, distinguishing it from the cooler tonalities of his Tōhoku subjects.