Book/Folio: Fifty-three Stations Of Tokaido,  Hoeido Edition c1930 
This portfolio of images depicts Hiroshige's 'Fifty-three Stations of Tokaido'.  The book is housed in a silk-lined hard wrapper, with a title box in the center front.  The wrapper is worn from handling as can be seen in the photos.  The pages are all present, including an image of Hiroshige, produced by his friend Utagawa Kunisada (Toyokuni III) in memory of Hiroshige.  This is the Hoeido edition introduced c1833-34, which is considered to be the best edition of the Fifty-three Stations of Tōkaidō.  This folio includes a two-page map of the Tokaido Stations, which we believe dates this folio to the1930s.  We believe it to be published by Watanabe Shozaburo, and was listed in their 1936 catalog.  The frontispiece images are secured to the hard covers, the remainder of the images are fan-folded, and double-sided (but not glued together) to include 55 images in all.  Overall, the interior folio woodblock pages are intact, with a small tear in the margin of one, which is shown in the photos.  The folio is clean with just minimal toning and soiling.  The paper is of very good quality, which is probably why the pages have held up to handling.  This folio does not have actual woodblock prints, it is a book, with beautiful images. The book folio measures 9" high by 12.5" across.  Each of the images measure 8.75" high by 11.75" across.    P75524    $395.00