UTAGAWA KUNIMARO.
Nyogo ga shima engi no irifune. [A treasure ship embarking at the Isle of Women].
[Japan], 1848-1854. 3 volumes. 22.2 x 15 cm. Volume 1: with a full-page woodcut illustration of 3 cranes (on the title-page?) on the inside of the front wrapper, 8 double-page woodcut illustrations showing erotic scenes, and a full-page woodcut illustration of 3 turtles. Volume 2: with a full-page illustration (on the title-page?) of pine needles and bamboo, 5 double-page woodcut illustrations showing erotic scenes, and a full-page woodcut illustration of plum blossoms. Volume 3: with a full-page illustration (of two pans on the title-page?), 4 double-page woodcut illustrations showing erotic scenes, and a full-page illustration of a table with a plant next to a draught screen. All illustrations are beautifully hand-coloured and set within a printed black frame. Original decorated paper wrappers (showing radiating suns in dark blue and blue and orange) in the traditional Japanese fukurotoji manner (double leaves with the fold at the fore-edge, each double leaf printed from a single woodblock on the 2 outside pages with the title and leaf numbers on the fold, stabbed and oversewn with yellow thread through 4 holes without a spine), the front and back wrappers folded in at all 4 edges, the first and last printed leaves pasted down to the wrappers, publishers manuscript title-label on the front wrapper. 3, 16; 16; 16 pp.
€ 6,850
Collection of magnificent colored shunga (erotic) woodblock prints, situated on the "Isle of women" by Utagawa Kunimaro (active ca. 1830-1860), a well-known Japanese Asian Antiquities artist, mainly working during the classical period in the 19th century. He was a pupil of Kunisda. On the fourth double plate in volume 1 is his pseudonym mentioned: "Utamaru".
With the first three pages of text in volume 1 showing light blue stamps of flowers. The bindings show some signs of wear around the spine and edges of the wrappers, the wrappers are slightly dust-soiled, internally very slightly dust-soiled. Otherwise in very good condition. Shirakura Yoshihiko, Eiri shunga ehon mokuroku (Tokyo 2007), p. 177
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