Ukiyoe Reproductions - bijin

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Kitagawa Utamaro The Widow of Hinodeya: from the series "Six Famous Beauties Challenge the Magnificence of the Six Poetic Geniuses" (Komei bijin rokkasen: Hinodeya no goke) Price A$130 (unframed)) Status New Reproduction Condition Excellent Size 250mm x 385mm Availability For Sale

Utamaro adored the fresh beauty of a woman who had just stepped out of the bath and made it a favorite theme of his prints depicting beautiful women. The widow of Hinodeya was one of the most celebrated beauties of Edo when the print was published. That it is indeed she who is depicted here with shaved eyebrows must be deduced from the "riddle picture" (hanji-e) in the upper left-hand corner of the print. The morning sun suggests Hinodeya (literally, "the rising sun shop"), while the go board and the clippings of hair (ke) together suggest goke, or "widow."

The technique of hinting at the identities of the artist's models in such riddle pictures was an ingenious device designed to circumvent a shogunal edict of 1796 (Kansei 8) banning the practice of recording the names of models on the prints themselves. At the same time, of course, the riddle pictures must have enhanced the enjoyment of customers, who were given a new opportunity to test their wits.

Kobayashi T., Utamaro Portraits from the Floating World., Kodansha International, 1st paper edn., 1982