Snow at a shrine or temple — Hasui's single most valuable subject combination. Prints pairing winter precipitation with sacred architecture dominate the top of his price range: Snow at Zojoji Temple ($16,000 at Artelino, 2023), Snow at Tosho-gu Shrine ($3,200 at Artelino, 2020), Snow at a Shrine Entrance ($3,100 at Artelino, 2020), Saishoin Temple in the Snow ($3,000 at Artelino, 2023). Edition period is critical: pre-war lifetime editions consistently outperform posthumous prints by 3–5×. Pre-war lifetime editions bearing the Watanabe copyright seal (A through G types, 1926–1944) are the most desirable.
The Inokashira Benten Shrine in Snow, published in 1929, depicts the island shrine at the center of Inokashira Pond in the Musashino district of western Tokyo — its torii gate and small hall surrounded by snow-covered pond ice, the wooded banks white and still in winter silence. Inokashira Park, developed in the Meiji period as one of Tokyo's first public parks, had long been celebrated for cherry blossoms, but Hasui's composition reveals its winter face: the snow-draped shrine, the frozen or near-frozen pond, the bare zelkova trees forming a filigree of dark branches against a white sky. The oban format and bokashi sky give the composition a contemplative spaciousness.
Woodblock print
c. 1832/38
Color woodblock print; oban
Yuki no Miyajima
1929
Color woodblock print; oban
1932
Woodblock print
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
The Inokashira Benten Shrine in Snow (Shato no yuki) (Shato no yuki) was created by Kawase Hasui (川瀬巴水) in 1929.
The Inokashira Benten Shrine in Snow (Shato no yuki) uses Bokashi, Karazuri, and Nishiki-e, on color woodblock print; oban.
The Inokashira Benten Shrine in Snow (Shato no yuki) was published by Watanabe Shozaburo (1929).
The Inokashira Benten Shrine in Snow (Shato no yuki) depicts snow scenes and temples & shrines.
The Inokashira Benten Shrine in Snow (Shato no yuki) measures 39.5 × 27.6 cm (Oban format).
