The Sacred Bridge (Shinkyō) at Nikkō in Snow
1897 · Woodblock print (ōban tate-e) · National Diet Library, Tokyo
The whole print, uncropped, on a printed cream mat with its title beneath.
Museum-quality archival paper: heavyweight, acid-free, resists yellowing
- Printed to order, arrives in 4–9 business days
- Arrives perfect or we reprint it, free
- Secure checkout with Stripe
- Questions? hello@madten.com
This print
About this work
- Artist
- Kobayashi Kiyochika (1847–1915)
- Year
- 1897
- Medium
- Woodblock print (ōban tate-e)
- Collection
- National Diet Library, Tokyo
- Movement
- Ukiyo-e
- Series
- Nihon meishō zue (Famous Places of Japan)
A red lacquered bridge arches over a fast green river in heavy snow, with a plainer wooden bridge in front of it where travellers carry umbrellas. Snow-covered rocks break the water in the foreground, and a white mountain rises behind dark, snow-laden cedars. The Shinkyō, or Sacred Bridge, crosses the Daiya River at the entrance to the shrines and temples of Nikkō. Kobayashi Kiyochika designed the print for his series Famous Places of Japan (Nihon meisho zue), and the red cartouche at the upper right gives the series and the bridge's name beside a short text about the site. The publication details in the left margin name the publisher, Matsuki Heikichi, and date it to 1897. By then Kiyochika had been designing woodblock prints for some twenty years. This impression is in the National Diet Library in Tokyo.
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
A red bridge and dark cedars in falling snow over pale green water, on a tall sheet. A seasonal piece for an entryway or beside a mantel with Hokusai's Morning after the Snow at Koishikawa, in a black frame to sharpen the red.
Size, framing & materials
- Style
- Ukiyo-e painting
- Era
- 19th century (1897)
- Orientation
- Portrait
- Mood
- dramatic, moody
- Rooms
- hallway or entryway, living room, dining room
- Good gift for
- housewarming, art lovers
Size. Prints at 12×18, 16×24, 24×36 in — 12×18 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 16×24 above a desk, console or in a hallway; 24×36 as the statement piece above a sofa or bed. See it to scale on your wall →
Framing. The gallery ground is part of the print, so frame it without a mat — dark 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).
- Restored in-house from a scan of the original print, cleaned and colour-trued at museum resolution
- Museum-quality archival paper: heavyweight, acid-free, resists yellowing
- Framed option: wood frame in black or dark wood, 12 mm wide and 22 mm deep, with a plexiglass front and no mat; the print is mounted inside and the frame's outside measures the listed size
- Made to order; colours may vary slightly from screen
