Yoshiwara koi no michibiki 吉原戀の道引 [吉原恋の道引]

  • This material is held at
  • Reference
      GB 59 16107.a.35
  • Dates of Creation
      1678
  • Language of Material
      Japanese
  • Physical Description
      1 volume Condition: Fair. Many folios soiled and rubbed. Torn and damaged folios in places, repaired by urauchi re-backing throughout. Impression: Slightly atozuri, but blocks show only moderate signs of wear. Illustrations: Double-page sumizuri woodcuts on every page from fol. 1b to 21a, depicting scenes in and around the Yoshiwara. Each mihiraki illustration occupies the lower part of the page, within a decorative frame. All illustrations have been hand-coloured at an unknown date, and are unsigned. Sumizuri designs of mon appear in the upper margin of each page. Seals of ownership: Two square red seals, Hayashi Tadamasa shozōin 林忠正所藏印 (seals of Hayashi Tadamasa) on first and last pages. Also an elongated red seal in shape of a koto, Kokōtei zōhon 古好亭藏本 (seal of the Horizu 堀津 family) on first page.

Scope and Content

Author/compiler: Unknown. Illustrator: Hishikawa Moronobu 菱川師宣, 1618-94. Imprint: [Edo] , Hondoiya, Enpō 6, 1678. Kanki following batsu on fol. 21b reads: 延寶六年清明日 / 通油町 本問屋開板. Description: 1 kan, 1 satsu, in a buckram case. ff. 21. 26.5 x 18.4 cm. Fukurotoji. Blockprint. Printing frame 23.5 x 16.8 cm. (average). Single-line borders, with a single horizontal rule 2 cm. below upper border, separating upper margin from text and illustrations. Double-line ornamental frame separating text (above) from illustrations (below). No fishtail design on hanshin. Hiragana-majiri text, with printed furigana only in preface and batsu. 15-16 lines to page, variable no. of characters to line. Renewed covers of green brocade decorated with floral pattern. Renewed title slip with manuscript gedai: 吉原恋の道引. Title from naidai on fol. 1a. Hashiragaki: Yoshiwara michibiki 吉原道引 + folio no. Edition: The only recorded pre-modern edition. Contents: A pictorial guide to the Yoshiwara district and its environs, compiler unknown. The illustrations are reliably attributed to Hishikawa Moronobu.

Access Information

Not Public Record(s)

Unrestricted

Acquisition Information

Transferred from the British Museum in 1973.

Other Finding Aids

Kenneth Gardner, Descriptive Catalogue of Japanese books in the British Library printed before 1700 (London and Tenri, 1993). C. Japanese works 和書 17. Fine arts 芸術 c. Book illustration 絵本・絵入本

Bibliography

Ukiyoe jiten 浮世絵事典, vol. 3, p. 427. Text transcribed, with text and illustrations reproduced in facsimile, in Yoshiwara fūzoku shiryō 吉原風俗資料, pp. 71-122.