Shimada: The Suruga Bank of the Ōi River
1833–34 · Woodblock print; ink and colour on paper · Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
📦 Free shipping on every order, arriving in 4–9 business days with production included. Express ($14.90) at checkout arrives in 4–6 business days.
This print
About this work
- Artist
- Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858)
- Year
- 1833–34
- Medium
- Woodblock print; ink and colour on paper
- Original size
- 22.8 × 34.8 cm
- Collection
- Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam (impression RP-P-1965-341; many other impressions exist)
- Movement
- Ukiyo-e
- Series
- Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō
Seen from above, the wide bed of the Ōi River is a pale field of sand crossed by deep blue channels, and across it moves a long train of travellers: porters with baggage, packhorses, palanquins on poles and a crowd waiting on the near bank. At the far left, men already wade the current carrying passengers across. The print is number twenty-four in the Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō, published by Hōeidō (Takenouchi Magohachi) in 1833–34. Shimada, the twenty-third station, stood on the Suruga bank of the Ōi, one of the widest rivers on the road. There was no bridge, and when the water ran high travellers could wait in town for days until the crossing reopened; impressions vary in colour and condition.
This print reproduces the whole work, uncropped, from a high-resolution scan of the original. The original is in the public domain.
Where it works
Broad pale sand and deep blue water with a long line of tiny figures, for a living room, office or long hallway at 36×24 in black. It pairs with Kanaya: The Far Bank of the Ōi River, the other side of the same crossing.
Style, size & framing detail
- Style
- Ukiyo-e painting
- Era
- 19th century (1833–34)
- Orientation
- Landscape
- Palette
- cornflower blue
- Mood
- calm
- Rooms
- living room, hallway or entryway, home office, dining room
- Good gift for
- housewarming, travelers, art lovers
Size. We'd hang this one at 36×24. Prints at 18×12, 24×16, 36×24 in — 18×12 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 24×16 above a console or sideboard; 36×24 as the statement piece above a sofa or headboard.
Framing. The gallery ground is part of the print, so frame it without a mat — natural wood flatters the lighter palette; black sharpens it.
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 Shimada: The Suruga Bank of the Ōi River in the public domain?
What is it printed on?
When was Shimada: The Suruga Bank of the Ōi River 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.
