Twenty Views of Tokyo: Kikyo Gate at Chiyoda Castle (Tokyo Nijukkei: Kikyômon)
by Kawase Hasui
by Kawase Hasui
From the 'Twenty Views of Tokyo' series. The Kikyô-mon, named for the bellflower crest of the Ii clan who once served as its guardians, is one of the original gates remaining from Edo Castle, the former seat of Tokugawa shogunal government. Hasui depicted this gate, which faces the Kikyô-bori moat on the southern perimeter of the palace grounds, as an emblem of layered historical time: feudal stonework persisting into a modernizing city. The composition likely positions the viewer at water level, allowing the massive masonry walls to rise dramatically from the moat's surface. Sparse vegetation, perhaps a willow or pine leaning over the stone, softens the architectural severity. The moat, rendered in cool indigo-gray tones, reflects distorted silhouettes of wall and gate. A graduated bokashi sky above conveys the season and hour. The print shares compositional affinities with Hasui's other moat-adjacent castle views in the series, emphasizing stillness and the persistence of the past within the modern metropolis.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Twenty Views of Tokyo: Kikyo Gate at Chiyoda Castle (Tokyo Nijukkei: Kikyômon) was created by Kawase Hasui (川瀬巴水).
Yes — Twenty Views of Tokyo: Kikyo Gate at Chiyoda Castle (Tokyo Nijukkei: Kikyômon) is part of the Twenty Views of Tokyo series by Kawase Hasui.
Twenty Views of Tokyo: Kikyo Gate at Chiyoda Castle (Tokyo Nijukkei: Kikyômon) depicts castles, edo & tokyo, and famous places (meisho-e).
