'Kakegawa: View of Akiba Mountain', Series 'Fifty-three Stations of the Tôkaidô', No. 27
Travelers crossing a high trestle-bridge over the Kake River, two of them peering into the water below, and behind a small boy watching a kite up in the air, while beyond another, with broken string, flutters to earth. Peasants transplanting rice in the flooded fields, and in the distance Mount Akiba rising above the mists.  A shrine standing on the top of a mountain near this station attracted worshippers from all over Japan who came to pray for protection against the calamity of fire. An old couple of travelers are struggling against a strong wind as they toil to cross the arched bridge. A naughty boy is following them with a mocking gesture.  This print  measures 8.5" high by 13" long, including the margins.  It is in excellent condition, no tears, holes or stains.  It bears Hiroshige's Kanji cipher, a series and title box in Kanji script, and a date seal, along with the publishers' seals, original and later.  Originally published c1853, this later edition dates to c1950.    P9617