The Zojoji Temple

Zojoji (増上寺), the Jōdo-shū head temple in the Shiba district of Tokyo, served as the funerary temple of several Tokugawa shoguns and ranks among the most architecturally significant Buddhist establishments of the Edo period. Hasui depicted the temple's Sangedatsumon—a triple-opening gate completed in 1622 and among Tokyo's oldest surviving wooden structures—on multiple occasions under varying atmospheric conditions. This version likely presents the gate under a seasonal or lighting condition distinct from Hasui's better-known snowfall treatments: perhaps an overcast evening in autumn with darkened sky gradations, or a dusk rendering that drains color from the surrounding landscape while silhouetting the gate's roof tiers. The print's technical challenge lies in the layered bokashi printing needed to sustain tonal continuity across a broad sky while preserving the architectural precision of the gate's carved keyblock impression. Published through the Watanabe Shōzaburō workshop.