Shiba Furukawa — 芝古川

Shiba Furukawa, written as 芝古川, refers to a section of the old Furukawa River as it passes through the Shiba district of Tokyo's Minato ward, an area known for the grand Zojo-ji temple and the surrounding gardens of former feudal estates. Nouet's oban woodblock print captures a waterway scene in a neighborhood that blended religious architecture, aristocratic gardens, and the everyday bustle of a Tokyo commercial district. The Furukawa, a modest urban stream, winds through a landscape of bridges, embankment walls, and overhanging trees that provided Nouet with intimate, human-scaled subject matter quite different from the grand vistas of his bridge and temple prints. The Shiba district's proximity to Tokyo Bay gave it a maritime character, with the river serving as a link between the port and the inland city.