Seki: Early Departure from the Main Inn
1833–34 · Woodblock print; ink and colour on paper · The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
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This print
About this work
- Artist
- Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858)
- Year
- 1833–34
- Medium
- Woodblock print; ink and colour on paper
- Original size
- 24.8 × 36.7 cm
- Collection
- The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (impression JP1877; many other impressions exist)
- Movement
- Ukiyo-e
- Series
- Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō
Before dawn, a lord's party gets ready to leave the main inn: curtains printed with a large blue crest hang across the gateway, attendants carry lanterns and boxes, and a servant points the way while others wait on the bench at the left. A signboard at the inn advertises Senjokō, a face powder, and a tall pole rises in the dim yard under a dark sky. The print is number forty-eight in the Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō, published by Hōeidō (Takenouchi Magohachi) in 1833–34. A honjin was the official inn reserved for daimyo and high officials, and Seki, the forty-seventh station, took its name from an ancient barrier on the road to the Suzuka Pass; impressions vary in colour and condition.
This full-bleed edition prints the work edge to edge from a high-resolution scan of the original, very slightly cropped (a few percent at most) to fit the sheet. The gallery edition shows the whole work, uncropped. The original is in the public domain.
Where it works
Deep night greys with white curtains and bold blue crests, for a hallway, study or home office at 24×16 in black. It pairs with Mishima: Morning Mist for two early starts on the road.
Style, size & framing detail
- Style
- Ukiyo-e painting
- Era
- 19th century (1833–34)
- Orientation
- Landscape
- Palette
- cornflower blue
- Mood
- calm
- Rooms
- hallway or entryway, study or library, home office, living room, dining room
- Good gift for
- housewarming, travelers, art lovers
Size. We'd hang this one at 24×16. Prints at 18×12, 24×16 in — 18×12 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 24×16 above a console or sideboard.
Framing. Printed edge to edge: a slim black or natural wood frame right to the image, or let the canvas wrap do the framing. Also available gallery-wrapped on canvas, ready to hang with no frame.
Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).
Details & materials
Shipping & returns
Is this the whole painting, or a crop?
Is Seki: Early Departure from the Main Inn in the public domain?
What is it printed on?
When was Seki: Early Departure from the Main Inn painted, and in what medium?
What size works above a sofa or bed?
About this design
The Madten promise
An exhibition poster
The same artwork as a gallery exhibition poster — title, artist & date typeset beneath the image on a soft ground.
A fine-art print
The same artwork as a clean fine-art print — the image shown large with a minimal caption.
