Page 107 - Christies Japanese and Korean Art Sept 22 2020 NYC

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KATSUSHIKA HOKUSAI (1760-1849)
Abe no Nakamaro
Woodblock print, from the series Shika shashin kyo (A true
mirror of Chinese and Japanese poetry), signed saki no Hokusai
Iitsu hitsu, published by Moriya Jihei (Kinshindo), circa 1833-34,
framed and glazed
Vertical nagaban: 20¿ x 8æ in. (51.1 x 22.2 cm.)
$8,000-10,000

The nobleman Abe no Nakamaro (698-770) sits leaning
against a balustrade on the terrace of a Chinese palace,
gazing at the moon. Four attendants arrive with dishes
of food. Aged sixteen Nakamaro accompanied a Japanese
envoy to China but was refused permission to return home,
remaining in China for the rest of his life. He developed a
succesful career, eventually becoming a regional governor.
The scene in the print is known to relate to a poem he
wrote longing to see his home in Japan again.
The same print is in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston,
accession no. 21.6673; and the British Museum,
museum no. 1910,0418,0.190.