Imayo Gosekku Bijin Awase – Keisai Eisen Ukiyo-e Woodblock Print, Edo Period c. 1827

Original Japanese polychrome woodblock print by Keisai Eisen (1790–1848) from the series 今様五節美人合 – Imayō Gosekku Bijin Awase, associated with the late Bunsei period, around 1827. The print is signed by the artist.

The series is documented in the collection of the Chiba City Museum of Art, where it is catalogued as an aiban-format nishiki-e series of the Bunsei–Tenpō period. Another impression from the same series has been documented by the specialist Tokyo dealer Hara Shobo and dated to the late Bunsei period, circa 1827.

The hanging kusudama in this composition strongly suggests an association with Tango no Sekku, the traditional festival of the fifth day of the fifth month. As the exact title of this individual design has not yet been confirmed in an institutional catalogue, this identification is given as an iconographic attribution rather than as a documented subtitle.

No standard kiwame censorship seal or publisher’s seal is visible on this impression. This is consistent with published impressions from the same series, on which such marks are likewise not apparent.

Condition

Printed on thin Japanese washi. The sheet remains in a naturally preserved, untouched historic condition and has not been subjected to modern pressing or flattening. Its slight natural undulation, fibre texture and original surface character have been retained.

The sheet shows age-related toning, scattered staining, minor creasing and traces of handling. The pigments have aged unevenly, with the blue remaining particularly strong. The principal printed composition is preserved. Please examine all photographs carefully for the complete condition.

Artist: Keisai Eisen (1790–1848)
Series: Imayō Gosekku Bijin Awase
Period: Edo period; series dated c. 1827
Technique: Polychrome woodblock print / nishiki-e
Genre: Bijin-ga
Material: Thin Japanese washi
Format: Aiban
Size: approximately 34.5 × 23.5 cm

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